Machado and Silvetti Associates, Inc.

The Getty Villa, located near Malibu, California, operates as a museum and educational center dedicated to the study of the arts and cultures of ancient Greece, Rome, and Etruria. The Getty Villa was designed to house J. Paul Getty's art collection when the collection outgrew his Ranch House, which had served as a private museum since 1954. After considering various options for expanding the Ranch House, Getty decided in the fall of 1968 to build a new museum on the same property, in the form of a first-century Roman country house, based primarily on the plans of the ancient Villa dei Papiri just outside of Herculaneum. The archaeologist Norman Neuerburg, who had studied the ruins of Herculaneum and was an authority on Roman domestic architecture, was retained as a consultant for the project. The Santa Monica architectural firm Langdon and Wilson was hired to design the Villa, and British architect Stephen Garrett, who had served as Getty's consultant in the remodeling of a Getty home in Posillipo, Italy, was retained as overseer of the construction. Landscape architect Emmet Wemple designed the gardens, Garth Benton worked on the murals, and Bruce Ptolomy worked on the fountains. Construction began on December 21, 1970, and the new museum opened to the public on January 16, 1974, receiving negative and positive reviews.

J. Paul Getty died in 1976 without ever seeing the museum he commissioned, but is buried at the Villa site on a bluff overlooking the ocean. After Getty's death and the establishment of the J. Paul Getty Trust, the Villa became part of a larger vision. As part of the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Villa is overseen by the J. Paul Getty Trust, an international cultural and philanthropic organization serving both general audiences and specialized professionals. The Trust is a not-for-profit institution, educational in purpose and character, that focuses on the visual arts in all of their dimensions. As of 2011 the Trust supports and oversees four programs: the Getty Research Institute; the Getty Foundation; the Getty Conservation Institute; and the J. Paul Getty Museum. Beginning in the 1980s the Trust developed an expansion plan that included the Getty Center campus in Brentwood and the renovation and expansion of the Villa in Malibu. When the Getty Center opened in 1997, the Villa closed to undergo extensive remodeling.

The architectural firm of Machado and Silvetti Associates redesigned the Villa site, adding galleries, skylights, an auditorium, an amphitheater, and new structures for conservation and administrative offices. Much of the original Villa was retained, including the wall murals, which original artist Garth Benton agreed to restore and refresh. The redesigned Villa opened on January 28, 2006, receiving high praise from reviewers. While most of the Museum's collections are housed at the Getty Center, the antiquities collection is housed at the Villa. The Getty Villa serves a varied audience through its permanent collection, changing exhibitions, conservation, scholarship, research, and public programs in an intimate setting overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Public and scholarly programs at the Villa include lectures, seminars, conferences, workshops, symposia, film series, musical concerts, and theatrical performances in the Barbara and Lawrence Fleischman Outdoor Classical Theater.

From the description of Getty Villa renovation design records, 1994-2004. (Getty Research Institute). WorldCat record id: 760914284

Biographical Information: Machado and Silvetti Associates

Machado and Silvetti Associates is an architecture and urban design firm based in Boston, MA. Incorporated in 1985, the firm's diverse projects include art museums, educational institutions, and urban design and planning worldwide.

In 1991, the firm was given the first ever Award in Architecture by the American Academy of Arts and Letters. The office has since received three National Honor Awards from the American Institute of Architects as well as the AIA Brick in Architecture Award, ten Progressive Architecture awards and citations, twelve design awards from the New England AIA chapter, seventeen Boston Society of Architects awards, including the 2003 Harleston Parker Medal, and the International Award for Architecture in Stone.

The firm's designs have been published in numerous international professional magazines and displayed in exhibitions in the United States, Europe, and Latin America. Monographs produced on the firm include, Rodolfo Machado and Jorge Silvetti: Buildings for Cities (1990), Casas 40: Rodolfo Machado & Jorge Silvetti (1995), and Unprecedented Realism: The Architecture of Machado and Silvetti (1995).

The J. Paul Getty Trust commissioned Machado and Silvetti Associates for the master plan and design of the new expansion of the Getty Villa after an extensive international search.

Historical Background: The Getty Villa

The Getty Villa, located in Malibu, California, operates as a museum and educational center dedicated to the study of the arts and cultures of ancient Greece, Rome, and Etruria. The Getty Villa was designed to house J. Paul Getty's art collection when the collection outgrew his Ranch House, which had served as a private museum since 1954. After considering various options for expanding the Ranch House, Getty decided in the fall of 1968 to build a new museum on the same property, in the form of a first-century Roman country house, based primarily on the plans of the ancient Villa dei Papiri just outside of Herculaneum. The archaeologist Norman Neuerburg, who had studied the ruins of Herculaneum and was an authority on Roman domestic architecture, was retained as a consultant for the project. The Santa Monica architectural firm Langdon & Wilson was hired to design the Villa, and British architect Stephen Garrett, who had served as Getty's consultant in the remodeling of a Getty home in Posillipo, Italy, was retained as overseer of the construction. Landscape architect Emmet Wemple designed the gardens, Garth Benton worked on the murals, and Bruce Ptolomy worked on the fountains. Construction began on December 21, 1970, and the new museum opened to the public on January 16, 1974, receiving negative and positive reviews.

J. Paul Getty died in 1976 without ever seeing the museum he commissioned, but is buried at the Villa site on a bluff overlooking the ocean. After Getty's death and the establishment of the J. Paul Getty Trust, the Villa became part of a larger vision. As part of the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Villa is overseen by the J. Paul Getty Trust, an international cultural and philanthropic organization serving both general audiences and specialized professionals. The Trust is a not-for-profit institution, educational in purpose and character, that focuses on the visual arts in all of their dimensions. As of 2011 the Trust supports and oversees four programs: the Getty Research Institute; the Getty Foundation; the Getty Conservation Institute; and the J. Paul Getty Museum. Beginning in the 1980s the Trust developed an expansion plan that included the Getty Center campus in Brentwood and the renovation and expansion of the Villa in Malibu. When the Getty Center opened in 1997, the Villa closed to undergo extensive remodeling.

The architectural firm of Machado and Silvetti Associates redesigned the Villa site, adding galleries, skylights, an auditorium, an amphitheater, and new structures for conservation and administrative offices. Much of the original Villa was retained, including the wall murals, which original artist Garth Benton agreed to restore and refresh. The redesigned Villa opened on January 28, 2006, receiving high praise from reviewers. While most of the Museum's collections are housed at the Getty Center, the antiquities collection is housed at the Villa. The Getty Villa serves a varied audience through its permanent collection, changing exhibitions, conservation, scholarship, research, and public programs in an intimate setting overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Public and scholarly programs at the Villa include lectures, seminars, conferences, workshops, symposia, film series, musical concerts, and theatrical performances in the Barbara and Lawrence Fleischman Outdoor Classical Theater.

From the guide to the Getty Villa renovation design records, 1994-2004, (The Getty Research Institute Institutional Records and Archives 1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100 Los Angeles, California, 90049-1688 (310) 440-7390 archives@getty.edu)