Flames from one of the wildfires raging across the Los Angeles region reached the grounds of the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades on Tuesday (7 January) but only affected vegetation on the campus. The museum, which is operated by the J. Paul Getty Trust and houses its collection of Ancient Greek and Roman art, is located in a re-created Roman country villa on the west side of Pacific Palisades, one of the neighbourhoods that has been most affected by the rapidly moving wildfires, which continue to rage out of control amid strong winds.
“Fortunately, Getty had made extensive efforts to clear brush from the surrounding area as part of its fire-mitigation efforts throughout the year,” Katherine E. Fleming, the president and chief executive of the J. Paul Getty Trust, said in a statement on 7 January. “Some trees and vegetation on site have burned, but staff and the collection remain safe. Additional fire-prevention measures in place at the villa include water storage on-site. Irrigation was immediately deployed throughout the grounds Tuesday morning. Museum galleries and library archives were sealed off from smoke by state-of-the-art air-handling systems. The double-walled construction of the galleries also provides significant protection for the collections.”
In a further comment today (8 January), Fleming added: "The Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades remains safe and intact this morning, 8 January, and will be closed at least through early next week. While trees and vegetation on the property have burned, Getty structures have been unaffected, and thankfully, both staff and the collections are safe. Out of caution and to help alleviate traffic in the area, the Getty Center in Brentwood will be closed at least through Sunday, January 12. We deeply appreciate the tireless work and dedication of the Los Angeles Fire Department, Los Angeles County Fire Department, and other agencies, and also the small team of Getty staff who have remained on-site at the Villa supporting emergency response efforts. We again express our heartfelt concern to our neighbors in the Pacific Palisades, Malibu, and surrounding areas affected by the fires."
Due to the Palisades fire, the Getty Villa will remain closed until at least Monday 13 January, as will the Getty’s main campus in the hills of Brentwood. The Skirball Cultural Center, located on the other side of the Santa Monica Mountains from the Getty, is also closed today (8 January) “for the safety and security of our visitors and employees”, according to a statement on its website.
Other cultural destinations and institutions in Pacific Palisades are also at risk. They include the famed Eames House, also known as Case Study House #8, designed by Charles and Ray Eames. “At this time the Eames House and Foundation staff are all safe,” a spokesperson for the foundation wrote on Instagram Tuesday evening.
Also threatened are Villa Aurora and the Thomas Mann House, a pair of artist residency and fellowship venues in Pacific Palisades operated by a German non-profit. “Fortunately, all fellows and employees of Villa Aurora & Thomas Mann House are safe,” a statement posted by the organisation on 8 January reads. “The impact of the fires on our two houses will only become fully visible in the coming days. The situation in [the] immediate vicinity of Villa Aurora is especially dire and we must expect the worst.”
The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, on the east side of Los Angeles, announced that parts of its campus will remain closed on Wednesday “due to continued high winds”. The Huntington is located in a neighbourhood adjacent to Pasadena, where another wildfire, the Eaton fire, is also burning out of control, consuming buildings and forcing residents to evacuate.
In the autumn of 2019, a wildfire in the Santa Monica Mountains came within a half-mile of the Getty Center.