Getty Villa Reopens

The Getty Villa has reopened six months after the devastating Palisades fire. No art was lost, but surrounding hillsides were set ablaze. The monumental clean-up required removal of about 1400 scorched trees, cleaning of the (modern) outdoor murals and statues in Roman style, and replanting of lost vegetation.

I didn't know what to expect, not having driven Pacific Coast Highway since the fire. Overall, there is less evidence of the blaze on PCH between Santa Monica and the Getty Villa than I'd imagined. The museum and its formal gardens are now close to the way you remember them. The photo of the Outer Peristyle Garden above is from this weekend. 

Before and after: The left photo is from June 2023, the right from June 2025. Tree loss has expanded the ocean view. The slopes to the north and west of the Villa suffered some of the worst fire damage. At left in each photo is the privately owned Villa de Leon, which East Coast media repeatedly confused with the Getty Villa during the fire coverage.

The museum entrance looks about the same until you notice the bare slopes, studded with stumps, to the north. The half-season of rain after the fire was enough to green the chaparral a bit.  

There are also bare slopes behind the East Garden. Getty landscapers left some trunks visible in remembrance of the fire.

The big umbrella pine at the entrance to the Herb Garden survived but has been trimmed back. These Italian trees are now considered less of a fire hazard than Australian eucalyptus.

This pine outside the East Garden did not fare so well. But it's sprouting green needles, barely visible in this photo, and has been left to recover. 

Embers blown by hurricane-force winds ignited the rosemary beds in the amphitheater. The resinous herb has been replaced by another purple-blossom plant that is presumably less flammable.

Rosemary hasn't been banished entirely. It's used to border a bed of artichokes in this summer's Herb Garden. 

Before and after of the Herb Garden's pergola  (June 2023 and June 2025 photos, looking in opposite directions). The new pergola is super-minimal, so far with no vines or fruit. 

The museum's indoor-outdoor ceilings dazzle after cleaning.

One message of the fire is that landscaping—even though "replaceable"—can affect how quickly the museum is able to recover from a major fire. Another message is that the Villa's fate is inevitably connected to that of the surrounding community. Pacific Palisades fire recovery kept PCH closed through late May.

The Getty Villa is currently open four days a week, Fri. through Monday. Free reservations are required.