The Orange County Museum of Art (OCMA) hosted a 24-hour celebratory opening night in their new location at the Segerstrom Center of the Arts in Costa Mesa, commemorating the museum’s 60th anniversary on Oct. 8.
The museum was originally located in Newport Beach in a smaller and dimly lit space not intended for art. A $94 million building enveloped in white terracotta and 53,000 square feet in size now takes its place.
The OCMA has been under construction since 2019, but designs for the building were first begun by Pritzker Architecture Prize-winning architect Thom Mayne 14 years prior. The architects began working on the current design of the building in 2015.
“I’m loving seeing the things that have been put away for so long that we used to docent: The Diebenkorn, the Chris Burden, and the Charles Ray,” former engagement guide Bonnie Simon said.
Following opening night, UC Irvine’s Claire Trevor School of the Arts Dean board member Mary Bruce reminisced on her previous encounters with the art on display.
“This is ours. This is the county’s,” Bruce said. “I’ve been here since ‘71 just like Bonnie, and it’s kind of neat to be back and visit old friends, because some of them were put away for a while.”
Inspired by the design of the New York Public Library and New York’s Met museum building, the OCMA features a cafe, rooftop access that covers nearly 70% of the building surface area, as well as spaces for both educational programs and performances.
“I was very pleasantly surprised with all the things I did see. I’m someone that really likes more traditional artworks, but seeing all of this makes me think about how different it is than what I’ve been taught, or what you see in textbooks and media,” California State University, Fullerton student Kevin Nguyen said. “It’s a unique experience worth a visit.”
Exhibitions include “13 Women,” Charles Ray’s “Ink Box” and Maria Maea’s “Madre Tina.”
“13 Women” is a tribute to the founders of the Balboa Pavilion Gallery, the original OCMA. To commemorate the new museum and the 60th anniversary of the collection, pieces from the original exhibitions dating back to the 1960s are currently on display.
Engagement guides additionally recommend exploring Charles Ray’s “Ink Box,” a hollow steel cube filled with 200 gallons of ink.
“A lot of people walk by and just think it’s a podium or a box and they never ask any questions about it, so they leave the experience of the museum never knowing. Then there’s people who just hang around and wait for you to explain it,” engagement guide Arnelle Johnson said. “It’s a spot where curiosity is rewarded.”
Engagement guide Christina Venurini recalled an experience with Charles Ray’s “Ink Box” from opening night.
“It’s the illusion of a solid form, and it’s kind of the danger that’s so fascinating to me… a photographer had tried to balance his wrists on the ink box to take a photo and he just dipped himself right into the ink. He got the ink all over himself,” Venturini said on Oct. 12.
In addition, OCMA Director Heidi Zuckerman partnered with $2.5 million-donor Lugano Diamonds to provide free museum admission for the next 10 years.
“I’m thrilled that Orange County now has a beautiful museum of modern art… Orange County’s grown up,” Simon said.
The OCMA is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays, and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursdays through Saturdays.
An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that the design selection process for the new OCMA structure did not begin until 2015. Morphosis Representative Nicole Meyer clarified the design timeline.
Juliette Fesas is a City News Intern for the fall 2022 quarter. She can be reached at jfesas@uci.edu.
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