Latest news with #KatherineFleming
CBS News
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
The Getty Villa Museum returns to regular full schedule after Palisades Fire closure
The Getty Villa Museum in Pacific Palisades is resuming its regular public schedule on Wednesday after the museum launched a soft reopening three weeks ago following a Palisades Fire closure. The museum had been closed for six months because of wildfire damage and has been open to the public with a limited schedule since June 27. As the wind-driven Palisades Fire took off on Jan. 7, museum executives ultimately credited and thanked the Los Angeles Fire Department for saving the museum from destruction during the wildfire. "The Villa was spared through the valiant efforts of the LAFD firefighters in the surrounding neighborhoods and targeted water drops," Getty representatives said. Museum officials stated that while the flames didn't damage any galleries or collectibles, trees, plants, and the irrigation system on the grounds were destroyed. Cleanup and deep cleaning of indoor and outdoor spaces were done while the museum was closed, which included flushing the water system, replacing all air and water filters, and removing more than 1,300 fire-damaged trees. "Museum galleries and library archives were sealed off from smoke by state-of-the-art air handling systems," J. Paul Getty Trust President Katherine Fleming said earlier. "The double-walled construction of the galleries also provides significant protection for the collections." Museum representatives said the site may look different to returning visitors, with less vegetation and some burn damage to the outer grounds. The Getty Villa's website asks guests to "step into the ancient world," to explore the Greek and Roman art, tranquil gardens and ocean breezes." Starting Wednesday, July 16, the museum will be open from Wednesday to Monday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and has also increased the number of daily reservations available. A new exhibition, The Kingdom of Pylos: Warrior-Princes of Ancient Greece, welcomes visitors, showcasing over 230 art pieces and artifacts from Messenia. While admission is free, a reservation is required. Make reservations online or at (310) 440-7300. Parking is $25, and $15 after 3 p.m.
CBS News
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Getty Villa reopens almost 6 months after Palisades Fire forced its temporary closure
The Getty Villa Museum has reopened its doors Friday, almost six months after the Palisades Fire forced its temporary closure. Over the last several months, staff have worked to deep clean spaces, remove debris and make sure the museum is safe for the public to return. On Jan. 7, the Palisades Fire erupted and quickly spread during a deadly Santa Ana wind event. Flames spread to the Getty Villa, burning trees and vegetation. Katherine Fleming, president and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust, said that although no galleries and collections were damaged, the museum's irrigation system was destroyed. The Getty Villa art museum was threatened by the flames of the wind-driven Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades, California, January 7, 2025. The fast-moving brushfire burned buildings and sparked thousands of evacuations as a life-threatening Santa Ana wind event ripped through the region. DAVID SWANSON/AFP via Getty Images Reopening day will feature the grand opening of The Kingdom of Pylos: Warrior-Princes of Ancient Greece exhibition. It will showcase over 230 art pieces and artifacts from Messenia. The museum will have a soft reopening, operating Fridays through Mondays before returning to its regular hours, the museum's website says. Museum officials said the property underwent extensive cleaning before painting on the outdoor frescoes could begin. Conservators worked with county and federal agencies to conduct environmental testing to ensure cleaning was safe. Although museum officials hope another wildfire does not threaten the property in the future, the museum has taken steps to ensure staff are trained and prepared to help keep them safe. The Getty Villa said.
CBS News
30-05-2025
- General
- CBS News
Getty Villa Museum in Pacific Palisades prepares to reopen months after Palisades Fire forced its temporary closure
At the Getty Villa Museum in the Pacific Palisades, crews have been preparing for its reopening months after the Palisades Fire forced the property to temporarily close. Since the fire, staff have removed more than 1,300 damaged trees, deep cleaned indoor and outdoor spaces, replaced air and water filters and flushed its water system. Fortunately, none of the buildings were damaged, but the community was still significantly affected. "It is with the utmost gratitude and appreciation for Getty staff, first responders, and other agencies that we can announce the reopening of the Villa to the public," said Katherine Fleming, president and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust. "Without their tireless efforts, we would not be in the position we are in today, where we can welcome back visitors and the surrounding community to enjoy the Villa grounds and collection." The museum will reopen to the public on June 27, featuring a new exhibition. Claire Lyons, one of the curators of antiquities, is behind the new exhibit that's being shown for the first time anywhere outside of Europe. "The focus of it is on the Mycenaean culture, the prehistoric culture of Greece, the first civilization of ancient Greece," Lyons said. "The Kingdom of Pylos: Warrior-Princes of Ancient Greece" will be on display through Jan. 12, 2026. It will showcase over 230 artifacts and works of art from Messenia. "We are incredibly grateful for the support received from the Museum community and beyond as we work towards reopening the Getty Villa Museum," said Timothy Potts, Maria Hummer-Tuttle and Robert Tuttle, Director of the Getty Museum. "We look forward to welcoming visitors back to explore our newest exhibition, The Kingdom of Pylos, and much more of our treasured antiquities collection this summer." This exhibit and the rest of the museum are free to visitors, with only a $25 charge for parking. For generations, school field trips have been a big part of the museum's mission to make art accessible to all. "We will issue about 500 tickets every day and we'll only be open Friday through Monday," said Desiree Zenowich, interim VP of Communications. The museum wants to do a slow rollout since access to the Pacific Coast Highway has recently reopened to the public. The museum will not be accessible by Sunset Boulevard, so officials instruct guests to use PCH only. Zenowich said the amphitheater is also looking forward to hosting a stage production in the fall. "It will be Oedipus the King, Mamba, which is a mash-up of Oedipus the King with music by Elvis Presley," she said. While civilizations may rise and fall, it takes dedication to preserve their legacy. "The doors were shut and sealed with tape to prevent any ash or anything else from coming in," Zenowich said.
Los Angeles Times
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Getty Villa sets reopening date after fire: L.A. arts and culture this weekend
The Getty Villa Museum will reopen to the public on a limited basis beginning June 27 after a nearly six-month closure forced by the devastating Palisades fire. On the night of Jan. 7, reports swirled that the wind-driven conflagration had reached the outskirts of the Villa. A Getty team stayed through the night, putting out spot fires with fire extinguishers and ensuring that the galleries were safely sealed off, while updating a command team at Getty Center that included Getty President and Chief Executive Katherine Fleming. A few days later, Fleming told The Times that the teams were confident that their thorough preparation — including extensive brush clearing — would keep the museum from burning. The galleries and other buildings did remain safe, but the glittering fountain pools went dark with ash. Extensive work on the property, including intensive cleaning and testing of indoor and outdoor spaces for toxic residue, is nearing completion. The water system has been flushed, and air and water filters have been replaced. More than 1,300 fire-damaged trees were removed. 'The site may look different to visitors,' the museum warned in an announcement this week, 'with less vegetation and some burn damage to the outer grounds.' The limited visitor hours will be 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Monday. The goal will be to help limit traffic on Pacific Coast Highway, which is the only way to reach the campus. (The Villa is not yet accessible via Sunset Boulevard.) Reservations are limited to 500 visitors daily, and free, timed-entry reservations can be booked online. Parking is $25. Unfortunately, the exhibition on view when the fire erupted, 'Ancient Thrace and the Classical World: Treasures From Bulgaria, Romania, and Greece,' had to close, but the Getty created a virtual tour. Times art critic Christopher Knight had great things to say about it when he viewed it just before the fire. The exhibition for the reopening is 'The Kingdom of Pylos: Warrior-Princes of Ancient Greece,' which will be on view from June 27 through Jan. 12. It will feature more than 230 works of art and artifacts from Messenia, a region in Greece where the Mycenaean civilization flourished during the Late Bronze Age. Theater fans can breathe a sigh of relief. The outdoor classical theater will return in the fall with 'Oedipus the King, Mama!' co-produced by Troubadour Theater Company. I'm arts and culture writer Jessica Gelt, looking forward to reading a book in the shade by a Villa fountain. Here's your weekend arts roundup. Does Los Angeles have its own musical style? Times classical music critic Mark Swed answers the question after attending the Hear Now Music Festival and Tod Machover's opera 'Schoenberg in Hollywood.' 'Los Angeles is the home of film music. The two most influential classical composers of the first half of the 20th century, Stravinsky and Schoenberg, lived here. ... The composer with the most radical influence on the second half of the 20th century, John Cage, was born and grew up here. Ferreting out L.A.'s bearing on jazz and the many, many aspects of popular music, as well as world music, is a lifetime's effort,' Swed writes. 'A Doll's House, Part 2' at Pasadena Playhouse gets a mixed review from Times theater critic Charles McNulty, who praises Jason Butler Harner's performance as Torvald, while noting that costumes and set design did not come together. Lucas Hnath's play picks up 15 years after the conclusion of Henrik Ibsen's 1879 classic, when Nora famously walks out on her husband and children. Nora's life is complicated. And so is McNulty's reaction to the show. Last week, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art laid off 15 full-time employees, accounting for 14% of its staff. Most were from the organization's education and public programming team. Seven part-time, on-call employees were also let go, according to the museum. Sources described the morning of the layoffs as chaotic and shocking, with staff being summoned by human resources and being told they needed to be out of the building by 2 p.m. The museum said in a statement, 'Education remains a central pillar of the Lucas Museum.' The Hammer Museum raised $2.4 million during its 20th annual Gala in the Garden last Saturday. The fete honored Jane Fonda and artist Lauren Halsey, and it featured a performance by the singer Griff. This marked the first gala for the museum's new director, Zoë Ryan, who took over in January. Last year's party marked a heartfelt send-off for longtime director Ann Philbin, who retired after 25 years at the helm of the institution. This year, per usual, plenty of celebrities were in attendance, including LeBron and Savannah James, Usher, Will Ferrell, Dustin Hoffman, Ted Danson, Mary Steenburgen and Molly Shannon, as well as plenty of artists including Doug Aitken, Andrea Bowers, Diedrick Brackens, Catherine Opie, Ed Ruscha and Jonas Wood. Thelma Golden, the director of the Studio Museum in Harlem, paid tribute to Halsey; Danson and Steenburgen celebrated Fonda. The Fowler Museum on Tuesday returned 11 objects to the Larrakia community of the Northern Territory in Australia. The items, which hold deep cultural and spiritual significance to the Larrakia people, consist of 10 glass spearheads and a kangaroo tooth headband worn by a Larrakia elder. Elders have worked closely with the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies and the museum over the last four years to identify and arrange the return of the objects. This particular return ceremony is the second time the Fowler has returned artifacts in partnership with AIATSIS. Last July, the museum repatriated 20 items to the Warumungu community of Tennant Creek in northern Australia. The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has announced its 2025-26 theater season — the first with President Donald Trump as chair. 'Hamilton,' as previously reported, is out. Offerings include plenty of Trump-approved Broadway fare, including 'Moulin Rouge,' 'Chicago,' 'Mrs. Doubtfire,' 'Back to the Future: The Musical' and 'Monty Python's Spamalot.' Tony Award winner Charles Strouse, who composed the music for 'Annie,' 'Bye Bye Birdie' and 'Applause,' has died. He was 96. — Jessica Gelt You can opt to be buried up to your neck in compost at this California spa. I love a good spa day, but this is a hard pass for me.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Getty Villa to Reopen June 27 With Major Mycenaean Exhibition After Palisades Fire Closure
After more than five months of closure due to the Palisades Fire, the Getty Villa Museum in Pacific Palisades is set to reopen to the public on Friday, June 27. The museum, modeled after a Roman country house and home to a collection of Greek and Roman antiquities, has been closed since January 7, since wildfire threats forced an emergency shutdown. Now, after extensive recovery and safety efforts, the Villa will welcome visitors back on a limited four-day schedule: Friday through Monday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.'It is with the utmost gratitude and appreciation for Getty staff, first responders, and other agencies that we can announce the reopening of the Villa to the public,' said Katherine Fleming, President and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust. 'Without their tireless efforts, we would not be in the position we are in today.'On the morning of the evacuation, 17 members of Getty's facilities, grounds, and security teams volunteered to remain on-site to protect the museum and its collection. Thanks to their efforts and coordination with the Los Angeles Fire Department, the museum was spared significant structural damage. However, the grounds still suffered: Getty crews removed over 1,300 fire-damaged trees and completed a deep clean of both indoor and outdoor spaces, along with system flushes and filter replacements. Visitors may notice the difference. The landscape has less vegetation, and some burn damage remains on the outer edges of the property. Due to road closures, the Villa is currently only accessible via Pacific Coast Highway (PCH), with no access from Sunset Boulevard. To manage both fire recovery and local traffic, the Getty is capping attendance at 500 guests per day. Timed-entry reservations are now available online, and parking remains $ reopening comes with a major new show: The Kingdom of Pylos: Warrior-Princes of Ancient Greece, the first major North American exhibition focused on the Mycenaean civilization. On view from June 27 through January 12, 2026, the show will spotlight over 230 artifacts from Messenia—long considered a hub of Bronze Age Greece—including clay tablets in Linear B, the earliest form of written Greek, and the Pylos Combat Agate, an intricate sealstone regarded as one of the most extraordinary pieces of Aegean exhibition replaces Ancient Thrace and the Classical World: Treasures from Bulgaria, Romania, and Greece, which was cut short by the fire. A virtual tour of that exhibition remains available on Getty's returning this fall is Getty Villa's beloved Outdoor Classical Theater, with its 19th annual production, Oedipus the King, Mama!, a co-production with the Troubadour Theater Company. Additional public programming, both online and in person, will accompany the Kingdom of Pylos exhibition throughout its run.'We look forward to welcoming visitors back to explore our newest exhibition… and much more of our treasured antiquities collection this summer,' said Timothy Potts, director of the Getty more information or to book a free timed-entry ticket, visit
