The Getty Villa is the brain child of late oil tycoon J. Paul Getty. The Getty Villa sits just above Malibu in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA and houses the extensive collection of antiquities formerly owned by J. P Getty. Getty envisioned the Villa as the perfect location to house his growing collection. We enjoyed a fine morning at the Getty Villa roaming around the gardens, posing, marvelling at the ancient antiquities, artworks and enjoying the sunshine.
The Villa: Today the Getty Villa acts as an educational center and museum dedicated to the study of the arts and cultures of ancient Greece, Rome, and Etruria. The collection boasts a rather impressive 44,000 Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities dating from 6,500 BC to 400 AD.
Walking around the villa you could easily be mistaken for thinking you were in an ancient European building. The villa design was inspired by the Villa of the Papyri at Herculaneum and incorporates additional details from several other ancient sites. I loved the black and white 3-D tiles and symmetrical layout of the gardens.
The gardens were bustling with school groups and couples admiring the plants and architecture. On the outskirts of the formal garden was a fully functioning kitchen garden with herbs, vegetables and fruits, as well as an impressive selection of flowers and pond for Koi carp. It’s almost impossible not to take a great photograph in such a stunning location!
The Getty Villa opened in 1974, but sadly was never visited by J.P Getty as he died in 1976. Despite never seeing his dream fulfilled, J. P Getty’s vision lives on to educate and inspire both young and old, locals and visitors from far and wide.
‘Good actions give strength to ourselves and inspire good actions in others’ -Plato
Christine
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