A preview of the controversial new building at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Previews of a new building at the LA County Museum of Art began last week. Some have bemoaned the cost and design, but many in attendance had nice things to say about the striking new galleries.

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

A blob, a freeway overpass, powerful, jarring - these are all ways that the newest building at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art have been - has been described. The project's look and cost, among other things, have been controversial. And while the art will not be installed until next year, Monica Bushman from member station LAist went to a preview of the space and got LA residents' reactions.

MONICA BUSHMAN, BYLINE: The new LACMA building is huge. It's made of concrete and glass. The galleries are all on one level with boxy walls. The roof is flat but curved on the edges. In addition to blob, it's been called an inkblot, or as Savannah Merritt (ph) puts it...

SAVANNAH MERRITT: One of my first thoughts walking up was, like, amoeba monster. It looks like this cool, concrete creature that holds art.

BUSHMAN: Merritt was among many LACMA members who recently came for an early look at the new building, officially named the David Geffen Galleries and designed by architect Peter Zumthor.

KEN LEE: It's great. I think this new building looks modern, and maybe it'll be another landmark (laughter).

BUSHMAN: That's Ken Lee (ph), who thinks the building looks kind of like a bunker, but he's still reserving judgment.

LEE: Does that age well? We don't know, right? So give it, you know, maybe three to five years before we can say it's a failure or a success.

BUSHMAN: This newest building has been criticized for its high cost of $720 million, though most of it was paid for by private funding. And then, of course, there were mixed reactions to its design. LACMA's director, Michael Govan, explained the thinking behind it in a recent interview with LAist. He said that the new structure was, quote, "built to last" and that the one-level design and multiple entrances were supposed to erase hierarchy.

MICHAEL GOVAN: So the idea is nobody's in the back. There is no back of this building, that it's amazing all the way around, 360 degrees.

BUSHMAN: And for many museumgoers at the preview, like John Buckley (ph), the design worked.

JOHN BUCKLEY: The Eiffel Tower was this horrible, ugly thing when it was put in. And now it's one of the most beautiful things in the world. So people will like it eventually.

BUSHMAN: The museum's full opening is planned for next April. For NPR News, I'm Monica Bushman in Los Angeles.

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