Getty Center

The Getty Center is a hilltop cultural complex in Los Angeles that houses the J. Paul Getty Museum’s collections alongside research institutes and conservation facilities. Designed by Richard Meier and opened to the public in the late 1990s, the Center is noted for its modernist architecture, gardens and city views.

Collection displays span European paintings, drawings, sculpture, illuminated manuscripts, decorative arts and photographs, arranged across multiple pavilions and exhibition spaces. The site also includes conservation laboratories, research libraries and a distinctive planted Central Garden that functions as both artwork and landscape.

The Getty Center was developed to house the Getty Museum’s collections and support scholarly work in art history and conservation; it consolidated collections and facilities on a single campus and has since been a major cultural destination in Southern California.

The campus sits on a landscaped hill in the Brentwood area of Los Angeles, north of the Getty Villa and west of UCLA, with vehicular access and a short automated tram from a lower-level parking arrival area.

• Admission and access: Admission to the galleries is free but a parking fee is charged for on-site parking; a tram carries visitors from the parking area to the museum plateau.
• Best time for views: The hilltop complex offers panoramic views across Los Angeles, making late afternoon and sunset popular times for photography.

What to See #

• Museum Galleries: Holds the museum's permanent and temporary art collections across paintings, sculpture, decorative arts and photographs, organised in multiple interconnected pavilions.
• Central Garden: A planted central courtyard garden conceived by a contemporary artist that organizes visitor circulation and offers varied plantings and water features.