Santa Monica Place, a retail center originally designed by Frank Gehry, will soon welcome an eye-catching children’s museum to its lineup.
Cayton Children’s Museum will open in a 21,000-square-foot space by early 2019, according to an announcement from ShareWell, a non-profit organization that oversees the museum.
A rendering of the Cayton Children’s Museum
The museum, currently known as Zimmer Children’s Museum, will be relocating from the Jewish Federation Goldsmith Center, located at 6505 Wilshire Boulevard on the corner of Wilshire and San Vicente boulevards. Its current space, where it has been for 18 years, spans 14,000 square feet.
Designed by R&A Architecture + Design, the new location will host more than 30 exhibits meant to encourage kids to engage with their community. It will center around five key so-called exhibit neighborhoods, named “Launch Your,” “Let’s Help,” “Reach For,” “Cloud Climber” and “Reflect On.”
A rendering of the Cayton Children’s Museum
It will also house an art studio, gift shop, workshop rooms and ShareWell’s administrative offices.
Renderings depict a contemporary structure with colorful panels on the exterior. Inside, kids will be able to climb scaled structures that hang in organic shapes from the ceiling.
In a gala event on Nov. 7, ShareWell announced it has already raised $10.8 million out of a $15 million goal to fund the museum’s opening.
A rendering of the Cayton Children’s Museum
The museum is named after major contributors Barry and Andrea Cayton. Barry Cayton is the CEO of the real estate firm Goldrich Group, an affiliate of Goldrich Kest.
Other donors include Hulu executive Craig Erwich and Sandra Stern, president of Lionsgate Television Group.
A rendering of the Cayton Children’s Museum
In addition to the museum, Culver City-based R&A is working on a number of projects around Los Angeles. The firm is also designing a modern, circular 19-story hotel on the Sunset Strip, as well as a 565,000-square-foot mixed-use complex in the Arts District.