Natural History Museum to preview new orca exhibit

The Natural History Museum in Exposition Park was preparing to unveil its new exhibition, “Orcas: Our Shared Future,” with a media preview set for tonight ahead of its opening to the public Sunday.

The 10,000-square-foot multimedia exhibition explores the connections between orcas, people and the oceans, combining science, culture and environmental themes through immersive displays and installations, according to museum officials.

The exhibition features about 140 original artifacts and specimens, including a sculpture of an articulated adult female orca skeleton and a life-size family of three replica orcas.

Officials said the exhibit examines the complex lives of orcas, including their communication, social structures and role as apex predators, while also highlighting their cultural significance to Indigenous communities of the Pacific Northwest Coast.

“Orcas are among Earth’s most complicated, fascinating, and misunderstood beings,” Dr. Lori Bettison-Varga, president and director of the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, said in a statement. “I hope visitors will leave ‘Orcas: Our Shared Future’ with a deep appreciation for these powerful icons of the seas and the significant role they play in our ocean ecosystems — and our imaginations.”

The exhibition also explores the impacts of captivity, environmental threats facing certain orca populations and the broader relationship between humans and marine ecosystems, according to museum officials.

“Orcas: Our Shared Future” will open to the public Sunday following member preview days Friday and Saturday, and will be offered as a special-ticket exhibition at the museum.

More information is available at https://nhm.org/orcas-our-shared-future-exhibition.