At New York Comic Con, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art gave fans an early look at the forthcoming museum and presented a conversation moderated by legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese with artists JR, Boris Vallejo, and Julie Bell. These storytellers came together to share their perspectives on the power of narrative art and the importance of celebrating popular art forms. The sneak peek of the museum included a 5-minute video that featured renderings, artworks in the collection, and a pre-recorded interview with the co-founders, George Lucas and Mellody Hobson.
(L-R) Boris Vallejo, Martin Scorsese, JR, and Julie Bell attend the Lucas Museum of Narrative Panel at New York Comic Con (Photo by Catherine Powell/Getty Images for Lucas Museum of Narrative Art)
Opening in 2026, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will be the world’s first institution dedicated to the exploration of narrative art—or what the founders call “the people’s art”—celebrating visual storytelling across eras and cultures, from ancient cave drawings and children’s book illustrations to comic books and digital media.
The panelists shared excitement about the forthcoming museum and what it will mean for different genres of art such as illustration and street art to be celebrated permanently within a museum for the first time.
Martin Scorsese, the esteemed director, producer, editor, writer, actor, historian, movie buff, film preservationist and champion of artists’ rights, shared while moderating the panel: “Visual storytelling is very close to my heart. George has been speaking to me about his vision for the museum for many years, where there is no distinction between high art and low art, just images that spark emotion, where we’re told stories that hold us together – stories that connect us. It’s fundamental to who we are as human beings. For me, it was pictures that lead to books, to reading, and to art.”
JR, the creator of monumental public art projects that inspire passersby to ask questions and confront their own perceptions, shared: “I feel the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is a place where we will be surprised. You’ll walk into the museum, and you’re walking into thousands of stories. That’s what I think is fascinating about narrative art – we are made of stories; we cannot live without stories. That’s such an incredible thing that we need in this society today. We need stories to help us share common emotions.”
Boris Vallejo, a globally beloved fantasy artist famous for his illustrations of Tarzan, Conan the Barbarian, and Doc Savage, said when asked about why his work resonates with so many people said: “The only thing that I can say is that I just paint it with all of my soul.”
Julie Bell, the first woman to ever paint Conan for Marvel and an artist and illustrator known for her hyper-realistic heroic fantasy and wildlife paintings, noted: “Stories are what create a culture, bringing us together. They teach you how to be human. The picture is the thing, and you can’t unsee it… I hope that people of all ages walk into the museum, especially little kids, and are enthralled by these gorgeous images, and then have all the feelings from the stories and the characters who they want to grow up to be.”
