An introduction
The Jack and Shanaz Langson Institute and Museum of California Art (Langson IMCA) at UCI serves as a cornerstone for the campus, the city of Irvine and visitors to the region. Currently located in an interim space near John Wayne Airport, Langson IMCA is expected to move into a new world-class facility on the UCI campus within the next several years.
Langson IMCA’s two founding collections — The Irvine Museum Collection of late 19th and early 20th century California impressionist and plein-air (made outdoors) paintings and The Buck Collection of postwar and contemporary art — together comprise more than 4,500 artworks in various genres and mediums.
The new site of Langson IMCA will be intentionally designed to showcase these collections and new acquisitions. It will be a dynamic hub for community and global engagement, including learning spaces for UCI and Orange County students as well as gathering spaces for regional residents and visitors. In addition, the new building will be integrated within the natural landscape, with sweeping vistas of the San Joaquin Marsh Reserve.
As home to the only institute and museum dedicated to the study and preservation of California art, Langson IMCA will attract renowned artists and scholars to campus to engage with the arts and educational communities and local residents.
Langson IMCA has made it a priority to develop close working relationships with elementary and secondary schools in the region, providing on-site and virtual programs for K-12 classrooms in Orange County. Since last fall, Langson IMCA has served over 4,000 local youths and their teachers from more than 50 district schools.
Through this lens of education, Langson IMCA reconsiders what it means to be both an art museum and an arts-focused research institute in the 21st century. Langson IMCA is fostering new opportunities for research and artistic practice through novel partnerships in disciplines that span the humanities, education, science and technology, the social sciences, and the health sciences.
The California Experience
- Langson IMCA celebrates artwork that emanates from the distinct and myriad social, cultural, economic, natural and other milieux of California.
- California’s natural beauty, diverse culture and traditions, and deep history are reflected in Langson IMCA’s growing collections as well as its exhibitions, public and educational programs, publications, and research initiatives designed to bring attention to the state’s significant contributions to visual culture.
Irvine Community & Beyond
- Langson IMCA serves as a cultural destination to foster meaningful encounters with art for Californians and global audiences alike.
- Beyond its collections, Langson IMCA is developing educational programs, research initiatives, publications, and community and cultural partnerships for audiences across the campus, throughout the region and around the world.
- With Langson IMCA being a dynamic hub of inclusion and engagement, artists and researchers will be able to share new practices and perspectives concerning art emanating from the California experience.
- Langson IMCA’s new, purpose-built facility will contribute to a more vibrant and productive cultural ecosystem on campus and in Orange County.
