Wallace Design Collective

Located in the Tulsa Arts District and directly across the street from the historic Cain’s Ballroom, the Oklahoma Museum of Popular Culture (OKPOP) will be a museum dedicated to the creative spirit of Oklahoma’s people and the influence of those artists on popular culture around the world. Stories featured in the museum will include movies, radio, television, illustration, literature, theater, Wild West Shows and Route 66— all connected to a sense of time and place through the language of music. The underlying theme will be “Crossroads of Creativity,” whether it is in the field of music, film, television, theatre, pop art, comic books, literature, or humor. OKPOP will collect artifacts, archival materials, film and video, and audio recordings that reflect Oklahoma’s influence nationally and internationally.

Wallace is providing structural and civil engineering services on this exciting new 52,500 square foot museum for all to enjoy. The design team found inspiration in a gold Fender Stratocaster custom made for Bob Wills’ guitarist Eldon Shamblin, which encouraged the project’s gold color palette. The museum was designed to house a living experience that includes event venues, stages and retail space. Some of the famous Oklahomans OKPOP will feature include Will Rogers, Bob Wills, Joan Crawford, Gene Autry, Leon Russell, Reba McEntire, S. E. Hinton, Garth Brooks, Wes Studi, Alfre Woodard, James Marsden, Carrie Underwood and Kristin Chenoweth, among countless others.

(estimated completion date January 2022)

Photography: ©Vast Media