COSTA MESA, CA.- Heidi Zuckerman, CEO and Director of the Orange County Museum of Art announced that general admission will be free when the institution’s new building opens on October 8, 2022. The free admission policy is supported for 10 years thanks to a $2.5 million gift from the Newport Beach-based Lugano Diamonds.

Designed by Morphosis under the direction of Pritzker Prize-winning architect Thom Mayne and Partner-in-Charge Brandon Welling, OCMA’s new home is currently under construction at Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, CA.

“Our goal is to remove as many barriers of entry as possible, and to connect as many people as we can to art and artists,” Heidi Zuckerman said. “We are deeply grateful to Lugano Diamonds for fostering these connections by supporting the cost of admission for the next decade—it will be a wonderful way to throw open our doors next year.”

“We are deeply committed to serving the arts, and proud to do so in Orange County, which has been a wonderful home. to Lugano Diamonds since 2005,” said Idit Ferder, Co-founder and COO of Lugano Diamonds and board member of the Orange County Museum of Art. “OCMA is entering a new era with Heidi Zuckerman’s leadership and this magnificent new building. It is an honor to help welcome people to OCMA’s stellar collection, exhibitions, and programs.”

OCMA’s new 53,000-square-foot facility, anchored by the open public plaza at Segerstrom Center for the Arts, includes 25,000 square feet of flexible exhibition space—approximately 50 percent more than its former Newport Beach location. California Biennial 2022 (CB22) will be the inaugural special exhibition in OCMA’s new home, as a celebratory nod to the museum’s rich history. Begun in 1984 and now being resumed after a hiatus, CB22 will be guest co-curated by Elizabeth Armstrong, Essence Harden, and Gilbert Vicario and continues the museum’s six-decade history of presenting new developments in contemporary art and identifying emerging artists on the verge of national and international recognition. Fred Eversley: Reflecting Back (the World), the artist’s first museum retrospective on the West Coast since a groundbreaking 1978 exhibition of his work at OCMA (then known as the Newport Harbor Art Museum), will also be part of the inaugural slate of exhibitions. The exhibition examines five decades of Eversley’s career and the technical innovation employed in his sculptures.

In addition to its contributions to OCMA, Lugano Diamonds supports Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Aspen Art Museum, Decorative Arts Society, Segerstrom Center for the Arts, American Film Institute (AFI), Laguna Playhouse, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Aspen Jazz Festival, and The Irvine Barclay Theatre.