DATE: March 12, 2007 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COLLECTIONS
ART FROM THE ANCIENT WORLD INSTALLED BY THEME IN RENOVATED GALLERIES AT THE GETTY VILLA
LOS ANGELES—The J. Paul Getty Museum’s permanent collection of Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities are installed at the Getty Villa in galleries now organized by theme for easier accessibility. These groupings of objects shed light on different aspects of life in the ancient world, from sports to religion, family, war, theater, and more. This approach enables visitors to easily view the artworks in the context of their use in classical societies, encouraging a deeper understanding of the period. More than 1,200 objects are on view, out of about 44,000 in the Getty’s antiquities collection. The works are presented in 23 galleries, with an additional six galleries devoted to changing and loan exhibitions that allow for the presentation of focused shows, often featuring materials from other institutions. These exhibitions may also incorporate works from the special collections of the Research Library at the Getty Research Institute (GRI) and reflect the scholarly activities of the Museum, the GRI, and the Getty Conservation Institute. Other highlights of the Museum include the Family Forum, a hands-on space for families filled with fun activities that encourage shared learning and discovery; and the TimeScape Room, a permanent installation that explores time, place, and artistic style in the ancient Mediterranean through interactive exhibits.
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FLOOR 1 GALLERIES Terracotta and Marble Vessels Ancient artisans shaped terracotta and marble to imitate the shapes and decorative schemes of vessels fashioned from metal, including precious gold, silver, and bronze. Clay, the most commonly available resource in antiquity, was easily worked and inexpensive, while marble was more costly and durable. Many terracotta and marble vessels were produced throughout the Mediterranean region, demonstrating their widespread appeal in the ancient world.
Silver Treasures Objects made of precious metals were offered as gifts to the gods at sanctuaries and displayed in homes as a sign of status and wealth. Some of these objects survive today because they were buried in shrines and graves, or hidden in houses for safekeeping.
Glass The earliest glassmaking techniques were labor intensive, and for centuries, glass was considered a luxury. With the invention of glassblowing in the first century B.C., vessels could be made more easily and glass became an affordable commodity.
Bronze Vessels Bronze was used instead of pottery for a variety of containers in affluent households. Most of the pieces on view were part of a table service for the cena and comissatio, the dining and drinking parties hosted by wealthy Romans.
Gods and Goddesses In antiquity, life revolved around religion and the worship of gods and goddesses, who inspired some of the greatest works of art. The Greeks, Etruscans, and Romans believed the gods looked and behaved like humans, although they were distinguished by their immortality, beauty, and great powers. There were 12 primary divinities that the Greeks and Romans shared but called by different names.
Luxury Vessels Precious metals, especially gold and silver, were a reliable form of wealth in antiquity. They functioned as status symbols in the home or prestigious gifts to the gods. Although objects fashioned from precious metals were often beautiful, their value was determined by their weight as well as their design. A variety of techniques, including hammering, chasing, and repoussé, were employed to fashion metal vessels. Many of these techniques are still used by metalsmiths today.
Basilica Statues of gods and goddesses were made by the best sculptors of the day in a variety of precious materials, such as gold, ivory, bronze, and marble. Housed in temples and shrines, many of the sculptures became famous, and small-scale versions were
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acquired by wealthy Romans to decorate their villas. This gallery includes works that were modeled after statues celebrated in antiquity.
Monsters and Minor Deities Featured works in this gallery include depictions of Medusa, Nike, and snaky-legged giants in marble, bronze, and terracotta.
Temple of Herakles This gallery is dedicated to a monumental 850-pound statue, the Lansdowne Herakles. All the statues in this gallery were unearthed in and around Rome in the 1600s and 1700s, and provide valuable information about the history of sculpture restoration and 18th-century practices of collecting ancient art.
Mythological Heroes In antiquity, the heroes of classical mythology were considered historical figures who lived in earlier times. They occupied an intermediate position between the gods and mortals, and embodied positive qualities valued by ancient societies, serving as role models. Images of Theseus, Perseus, Orpheus, and Herakles are the focus of this display, which includes monumental terracotta figures, vases, mosaics, and marbles.
Stories of the Trojan War Presented here are works of art that depict episodes of the Trojan War and its aftermath. Among the highlights in this gallery are a Roman sarcophagus depicting Greek hero Achilles dragging the body of the fallen Trojan hero Hector behind his chariot, and an Etruscan vase showing the blinding of the cyclops Polyphemos.
Dionysos and the Theater Some of the world’s greatest plays were written by the ancient Greeks, who looked to Dionysos, the god of theater, for inspiration. This gallery includes a large bronze head of a young Dionysos wearing an ivy wreath on his head, emphasizing his role as the god of wine. Also on view here are vases, lamps, small bronzes, and terracottas depicting actors and scenes from ancient dramatic performances. The works in this gallery complement the Getty Villa’s theater program.
FLOOR 2 GALLERIES Changing Exhibitions Six changing exhibition galleries have been designed for maximum flexibility to present exhibitions ranging from 19th-century photographs of archaeological sites to ancient mosaics.
Funerary Sculpture Each of the sculptures in this gallery commemorates the death of an individual. Both the Greek and the Romans honored the dead with highly visible monuments, which
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typically stood along roads leading out of cities. Idealized images of the dead served as models of proper appearance and behavior for the living.
Animals in Antiquity Animals were a constant part of everyday life in the ancient world. They were a source of food, labor, companionship, and also acted as sacrifices in religious rituals. In art and myth, animals represented virtues and values, and were associated with different divinities.
Arts of Greco-Roman Egypt Alexander the Great established Greek rule in Egypt in 332 B.C. For 300 years Greek and Egyptian art, religion, and culture intermixed. After the Battle of Actium in 31 B.C., Egypt came under Roman rule and a wave of “Egyptomania” swept the empire. Roman practices, such as realistic portraiture, were combined with Egyptian ones, such as mummification, to create such unique artifacts as mummy portraits painted on wooden panels, which are often called Fayum portraits after the district in Egypt where many have been recovered. The Museum’s fine collection of Fayum portraits and a painted sarcophagus and its contents are featured in this gallery.
Women and Children in Antiquity This skylit space features marbles, vases, bronzes, and terracottas depicting aspects of the lives of women and children in ancient Greece and Rome. Throughout the ancient world, women’s lives centered on the home and family, although they also participated in public rituals. Depictions of women tend to be more idealized than those of men. Images of children and their toys in ancient art offer insight into their lives, which were largely predetermined by their gender and the status of their parents.
Religious Offerings Gifts, often in the form of statues and other splendid artifacts, were given to the gods to thank them for blessings received and to ensure good fortune. Highlights of this gallery include marble reliefs, terracotta and bronze offerings, and scenes of sacrifice and dedication.
Men in Antiquity Men of both high and low social status lived most of their lives in the public arena. This skylit gallery includes a large display of armor, statues, vases, and portraits depicting all aspects of the lives of men in ancient Greece and Rome, from their roles as warriors and politicians to philosophers and fishermen.
The Victorious Youth Victorious athletes won honor and fame not only for themselves but also for their families and communities. Some were commemorated with statues. This gallery is dedicated to a life-size bronze depicting a victorious athlete. The gallery has a
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microclimate designed to maintain a condition of low relative humidity to allow the monumental bronze to be exhibited outside the confines of a display case.
Athletes and Competition The modern-day Olympics are modeled on the ancient Greek games that were thought to have begun in 776 B.C. at the sanctuary of Zeus in Olympia. This gallery features works of art that reveal the importance of sport and competition in the ancient world. Highlights include a Panathenaic vase depicting athletic contests, small bronzes, a mosaic, and marble figures of athletes.
Gems, Coins, and Jewelry Small precious articles such as gems, coins, jewelry, and carved ambers fill this gallery. Before the excavation of ancient sites in the 18th century, coins and carved gems were among the first artifacts known from antiquity. Carefully studied and catalogued, these works served as the basis for the first modern discussions of ancient art.
Griffins Part lion and part eagle, griffins symbolize the forces of land and air. In mythology they represent the power of the sun and were sacred to Apollo. They are also associated with Nemesis, the goddess of retribution. The Greeks (and later the Etruscans and Romans) believed that griffins lived beyond Scythia, the region north and east of the Black Sea, where they guarded hoards of gold from a neighboring tribe of one-eyed men called Arimasps.
Prehistoric and Bronze Age Arts The earliest art of the Mediterranean is featured in this gallery. Highlights include one of the Getty’s most popular objects—a Cypriot figure of a fertility goddess, an important cult statue made between 3000 and 2500 B.C. Also on view is a rare figure of a Cycladic harp player, one of less than a dozen male harpists known to exist.
THE J. PAUL GETTY MUSEUM ANTIQUITIES COLLECTION The J. Paul Getty Museum focuses on seven areas of collecting: Greek and Roman antiquities; European paintings, drawings, manuscripts, sculpture, and decorative arts; and European and American photographs. The majority of the collection is held at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, with antiquities housed at the Getty Villa in Malibu. Antiquities were one of the most important elements of the original collection that Mr. Getty built. Over the years, it has grown into one of the finest in this country,
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with works dating from about 6500 B.C. to A.D. 600, including small objects such as gems, vases, and drinking vessels to life-sized statues and large funerary sculptures. The collection is strong in Greek vases. Among the highlights is a Chalcidian amphora (storage jar) made in Rhegion (modern Reggio Calabria), one of the south Italian colonies of the Greek city-state Chalcis. It depicts accurately a scene from the Iliad, told in brutal clarity, in which the wily Greek heroes Diomedes and Odysseus sneak into the camp of the enemy Thracian King Rhesos while he and his troops are asleep and cut their throats in order to steal their immortal horses. A group of 10 silver drinking vessels from the outer reaches of the empire of Alexander the Great, perhaps as far east as modern Afghanistan, includes a rhyton (a horn-shaped vessel with a spout) in the form of a stag, the noblest quarry of hunters. This and others of the group—a lion, two lynxes—are among the most vigorous representations of animals from all of antiquity. Silver like this, a token of wealth and imperial favor in antiquity, was melted down on such a scale that few have survived. The Getty also holds pieces of Hellenistic gold jewelry, including a spectacular group of jewelry that includes a diadem with pendant beads and inlaid garnets, an elaborate hairnet graced with the image of Aphrodite, Greek goddess of love, and pairs of snake bracelets and armlets. The bronze statuette of a dead warrior is one of the most beautiful Greek works in the collection. The complex arched and twisting pose embodies the artist’s interest in exploring the expressive possibilities of his medium. This Greek bronze of the early fifth century eloquently embodies the ideal of kalos thanatos, beauty in death. Another highlight is the Oppenländer collection of more than 350 pieces of beautiful and rare ancient glass. The group constitutes a comprehensive overview of ancient glass, including statuettes, amulets, inlays, and beads, as well as numerous vessels for eating and drinking, and for holding perfume or ointment. Although most are Greek or Roman, the collection also comprises pieces of Egyptian, Achaemenid, Mycenaean, Etruscan, Byzantine, and Islamic manufacture. The acquisition places the Getty among the nation's leading centers for the display and study of ancient glass. -more- Page 7
In 1996, the Getty received one of the most important groups of antiquities since Mr. Getty's gift of his personal collection. More than 300 objects from one of the finest private collections of antiquities, from Barbara and Lawrence Fleischman of New York, were acquired through a combination of gift and purchase. The group includes major Greek and Roman marble statues, vases, bronzes, and terracottas that complement the works already in the Getty’s collection. Among the highlights are a large marble head of a Cycladic figure that still retains pigment indicating hair and possibly tattoos, and a magnificent large Greek wine vessel (lebes) of the Hellenistic period, decorated with relief attachments and silver inlays.
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The J. Paul Getty Trust is an international cultural and philanthropic institution devoted to the visual arts that features the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Getty Research Institute, the Getty Conservation Institute, and the Getty Foundation. The J. Paul Getty Trust and Getty programs serve a varied audience from two locations: The Getty Center in Los Angeles and the Getty Villa in Malibu.
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