The Broad, the free contemporary art collection that has become one of the most popular museums in Los Angeles since it opened in 2015, is expanding, officials said on Wednesday.
Building on its success, the Broad — housed in a striking white honeycomb structure on Grand Avenue across from Walt Disney Concert Hall — is putting up a 55,000-square-foot addition that will be designed by its original architects, Diller, Scofidio + Renfro. It plans to open before the 2028 Summer Olympics, which are being held in Los Angeles.
The project will continue the legacy of the museum’s founder, Eli Broad, a businessman and philanthropist who sought to reinvigorate downtown Los Angeles with arts and culture, who died in 2021.
“This really doubles down on the collecting approach and ultimate mission we have here, which is to build as large an audience for contemporary art as possible,” Joanne Heyler, the Broad’s founding director and president, said in a recent interview. “That was built into Eli’s ethos from the very beginning, and what he said even before we dreamed of opening a museum of our own.”
The expansion is expected to cost about $100 million, officials said, and will be privately funded by The Broad Foundations. Mr. Broad and his wife, Edythe, are the institution’s sole donors, and both the museum and the collection are supported by an endowment that currently amounts to approximately $1 billion.
“I am happy about the museum’s success and especially all the people who’ve discovered a love of contemporary art at The Broad,” Edythe Broad said in a statement. “It’s beyond what Eli and I could have hoped for.”
