J. Paul Getty Trust
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The J. Paul Getty Trust is the world's wealthiest art institution, with an estimated endowment of US$7.7 billion in 2020. Based in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, California, it operates the J. Paul Getty Museum, which has two locations—the Getty Center in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles and the Getty Villa in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles. Its other programs are the Getty Foundation, the
Getty Research Institute The Getty Research Institute (GRI), located at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, California, is "dedicated to furthering knowledge and advancing understanding of the visual arts".
, and the Getty Conservation Institute. With an estimated 1.6 million visitors per year, the trust operates one of the most visited museums in the United States. The trust also provides grants and training to other museums and cultural institutions. The trust has a library, publications program and visiting scholar program. The trust's conservation program is dedicated to advancing conservation practice through the creation and delivery of knowledge. However, since 2008, the trust has scaled back the scope of its activities in response to financial challenges.


History

The J. Paul Getty Museum Trust was established by business tycoon J. Paul Getty in 1953. Getty had founded the Getty Oil Company in 1942, and '' Fortune'' magazine named him the richest living American in 1957. At his death, he was worth more than $2 billion.Lenzner, Robert. ''The great Getty: the life and loves of J. Paul Getty, richest man in the world''. New York: Crown Publishers, 1985. Getty died in 1976Whitman, Alden
J. Paul Getty dead at 83; amassed billions from oil.
''New York Times'', June 6, 1976. Retrieved September 6, 2008.
and left the bulk of his estate, including nearly $660 million worth of stock in Getty Oil, to the J. Paul Getty Museum Trust. Legal conflicts over the will took years to resolve, but in 1982, the trust finally received Getty's full bequest. The trust began to add a number of new programs in 1982, and in February 1983, it petitioned the court to change its name to 'The J. Paul Getty Trust'. In 1997, Barry Munitz was named the president and CEO of the trust. He began work in January 1998, succeeding Harold M. Williams, the first president of the Getty Trust, who oversaw construction of the $1 billion Getty Center designed by architect Richard Meier. With an endowment of $4.2 billion, in 2009 the Getty Trust was the wealthiest art institution in the world.Edward Wyatt, "Getty Fees and Budget Reassessed," ''The New York Times'', April 30, 2009, p. C1. Early in his tenure, Munitz reorganized the Getty Trust, closing two of the institution's six programs—the Getty Information Institute and the Getty Education Institute. To deal with long-run financial issues, he sought to cultivate relationships with donors and corporate partners. His leadership became increasingly controversial as the Getty Trust was embroiled in numerous controversies relating to the
provenance Provenance () is the chronology of the ownership, custody or location of a historical object. The term was originally mostly used in relation to works of art, but is now used in similar senses in a wide range of fields, including archaeology, p ...
of various
antiquities Antiquities are objects from antiquity, especially the civilizations of the Mediterranean such as the Classical antiquity of Greece and Rome, Ancient Egypt, and the other Ancient Near Eastern cultures such as Ancient Persia (Iran). Artifact ...
in the Getty Museum's collections and Munitz' expense account. In the midst of an investigation by the California Attorney General, Munitz resigned in 2006 and was forced to "forgo his severance package of more than $2 million, and reimburse the Getty Trust for $250,000 after alleged improprieties including lavish expense account spending." On December 4, 2006, the trust announced the hiring of art historian James N. Wood, the former Director of the
Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the United States. The museum is based in the Art Institute of Chicago Building in Chicago's Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park. Its collection, stewa ...
, as the trust's new president and CEO, replacing Barry Munitz, who was forced to step down earlier in the year. In 2009, after a substantial drop in the trust's assets, Wood cut nearly 100 employees at the trust's various operations, most at the Getty Museum. Fees for parking at the museum and the Getty Villa were raised by 50% to $15. Wood died suddenly of natural causes on June 12, 2010. In May 2011 James Cuno, director of the
Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the United States. The museum is based in the Art Institute of Chicago Building in Chicago's Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park. Its collection, stewa ...
, was named president and chief executive of the Getty Trust, to take office in August. In April 2022, Katherine Fleming, Provost of
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
, was named president and chief executive of the Trust, to take office in August 2022.


Programs

The J. Paul Getty Museum is an
art museum An art museum or art gallery is a building or space for the display of art, usually from the museum's own Collection (artwork), collection. It might be in public or private ownership, be accessible to all, or have restrictions in place. Although ...
.About the J. Paul Getty Trust.
. Retrieved August 15, 2008.
It has two locations, one at the Getty Center in
Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, and one at the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, California. The museum at the Getty Center contains "Western art from the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
to the present;" its estimated 1.3 million visitors annually makes it one of the most visited museums in the United States. The museum at the Getty Villa contains art from "ancient
Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
,
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
, and Etruria". The museum started as J. Paul Getty's personal art collection. The Getty Foundation was originally called the "Getty Grant Program," which began in 1984 under the direction of Deborah Marrow.Muchnic, Suzanne. Director wants a wider reach for Getty grants. ''Los Angeles Times'', March 5, 1990. The J. Paul Getty Trust can spend up to 0.75% of its endowment on gifts and grants; by 1990 the Getty Grant Program (then based in
Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
) had made 530 grants totaling $20 million to "art historians, conservators and art museums in 18 countries". For example, a foundation grant funded the restoration of the Cosmati Pavement in the floor of Westminster Abbey. For many years, the foundation conducted the Getty Leadership Institute (GLI). The major GLI program is the Museum Leadership Institute (MLI), formerly known as the Museum Management Institute, which "has served close to 1,000 museum professionals from the United States and 30 countries worldwide".Getty Foundation
About the Getty Leadership Institute.
Retrieved September 18, 2008.
However, effective on January 2, 2010, the GLI was transferred to the Claremont Graduate University in Claremont, California and was renamed "The Getty Leadership Institute at Claremont Graduate University". The
Getty Research Institute The Getty Research Institute (GRI), located at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, California, is "dedicated to furthering knowledge and advancing understanding of the visual arts".
(GRI), located at the Getty Center in
Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, is "dedicated to furthering knowledge and advancing understanding of the visual arts".About the Research Institute (Research at the Getty)
Retrieved August 31, 2008.
GRI maintains a research library, organizes exhibitions and other events, sponsors a residential scholars program, publishes books, and maintains electronic databases including a
Semantic Web The Semantic Web, sometimes known as Web 3.0, is an extension of the World Wide Web through standards set by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The goal of the Semantic Web is to make Internet data machine-readable. To enable the encoding o ...
service. The GRI was originally called the "Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities", and was conceived as early as 1983. Among other holdings, GRI's research library contains about 900,000 volumes of books, periodicals, and auction catalogs; special collections; and two million photographs of art and architecture. The library also includes the trust's "Institutional Archives" which document the activities of the trust's various programs. The Getty Conservation Institute (GCI), located in
Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, is headquartered at the Getty Center but also has facilities at the Getty Villa, and commenced operation in 1985.J. Paul Getty Trust
About the Conservation Institute.
Retrieved August 24, 2008.
The GCI is a private international research institution dedicated to advancing conservation practice through the creation and delivery of knowledge. It "serves the conservation community through scientific research, education and training, model field projects, and the dissemination of the results of both its own work and the work of others in the field" and "adheres to the principles that guide the work of the Getty Trust: service, philanthropy, teaching, and access". GCI has activities in both art conservation and
architectural conservation Conservation and restoration of immovable cultural property describes the process through which the material, historical, and design integrity of any immovable cultural property are prolonged through carefully planned interventions. The indivi ...
.Adams, Eric. The Getty's conservation mission. ''Architecture'', December 1997, vol. 86, issue 12. GCI scientists study the deterioration of objects and buildings, and how to prevent or stop such deterioration.Getty Conservation Institute
About GCI Science.
Retrieved August 26, 2008.
GCI has also been involved with long-term education programs, such as establishing a master's degree program in Archaeological and Ethnographic Conservation in collaboration with the
University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...
. From 1983 to June 1999, the Trust ran the Getty Information Institute (GII) which sought to collect electronic information to serve cultural heritage institution and researchers. Together with the American Council of Learned Societies GII sought to build a broad coalition of non-profits to establish a National Initiative for a Networked Cultural Heritage. Upon the dissolution of the GII, its data bases were transferred to the Getty Research Institute.


Governance

The trust was established by a Trust Indenture dated December 2, 1953 that created a California charitable trust was "the diffusion of artistic and general knowledge." The trust is governed by a 13-member board of trustees. Trustees are elected to serve four-year terms, with a maximum limit of three terms. The board is self-perpetuating with the board electing or re-electing the trustees. The board holds an annual meeting in May or June of each year. Although the board conducts most of its work through committees, a number of important decisions are reserved for the entire board including approval of any art acquisition costing more than $1 million. On October 2, 2006, the California Attorney General issued a report following an investigation of the trust and its operations. At the close of the investigation an independent monitor was hired to assure proper governance and expenditures of the trust. On May 7, 2008, the Attorney General closed the monitoring process. The trust was hurt by the economic downturn following 2007 and reduced its annual budget by 14%. In 2007, the trust had $6.4 billion in endowment, but this amount dropped to $4.5 billion in 2009. In 2009, the trust had $300 million in expenses down from $349 million in 2008. For example, GRI co-produced the Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals with the Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, but transferred that activity to
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
on July 1, 2009. With the recovery of the post-recession economy, the trust rose to $6.9 billion by 2018.


J. Paul Getty Medal

The J. Paul Getty Medal was established in 2013 by the Trustees of the J. Paul Getty Trust to honor extraordinary contributions to the practice, understanding and support of the arts. The first recipients of the Getty Medal, which was presented in December 2013, were Harold M. Williams and Nancy Englander, who were honored for their leadership in creating the Getty as it exists today. In November 2014, the Getty Medal was presented to Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild, a volunteer cultural leader known for his dedication to the preservation and public interpretation of Waddesdon Manor. In September 2015, the Getty Medal was awarded to architect Frank Gehry, who has built an architectural career over five decades and produced public and private buildings in America, Europe, and Asia. His work has earned Mr. Gehry several of the most significant awards in the architectural field, including the
Pritzker Architecture Prize The Pritzker Architecture Prize is an international award presented annually "to honor a living architect or architects whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment which has produced consisten ...
. The 2016 Getty Medal was awarded to musician Yo-Yo Ma and, posthumously, to artist Ellsworth Kelly at a celebratory dinner in October. In addition to his accomplished career as a master cellist, Ma founded the Silk Road Ensemble and the nonprofit Silkroad to promote the creation of new music, cross-cultural partnerships, education programs, and cross-disciplinary collaborations to create meaningful change at the intersection of the arts, education, and business. Accomplished painter and sculptor Ellsworth Kelly has supported the conservation of historical and contemporary art at museums and heritage sites in the U.S. and around the world, as well as the preservation of natural environment, through the Ellsworth Kelly Foundation. Artist Anselm Kiefer and writer Mario Vargas Llosa were presented with the 2017 J. Paul Getty Medal at a dinner in New York City on November 13, 2017. In September 2018, the Getty Medal was awarded to Thelma Golden, director and chief curator of The Studio Museum in Harlem, Agnes Gund, president emerita of the
Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...
, and Richard Serra, minimalist
sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
. The 2019 J. Paul Getty Medal was awarded to classicist Mary Beard and artists Ed Ruscha and Lorna Simpson. The 2020 recipients, announced in February, were Alice Walton, Martin Puryear, and Kwame Anthony Appiah.


References

{{Good article Getty family Arts organizations based in California Museum organizations Art in Greater Los Angeles Organizations based in Los Angeles Organizations established in 1982 1982 establishments in California