Getty Center

In the mid 1950s, Dutch-American abstract expressionist Willem de Kooning painted Woman-Ochre, part of his controversial Woman series. The painting was eventually donated to the University of Arizona Museum of Art, where it was on display until 1985 when it was cut from its frame and stolen, missing for the next 32 years. This exhibition picks up after the painting’s momentous 2017 recovery, highlighting its scientific analysis and painstaking conservation treatment.

Two new works by British European artist Tacita Dean engage with the sites and collections of the Getty Center and Getty Villa Museum. Her 16mm film Pan Amicus imagines the landscapes around the Getty Center and the Getty Villa as part of Arcadia, the mythical home of Pan, Greek god of nature. Her portfolio of 50 objects, Monet Hates Me, traces Dean’s chance encounters in the vast art historical archives at the Getty Research Institute.

Though Pan Amicus was originally commissioned to celebrate the Getty Center’s 20th anniversary, this installation of both works coincides with the Center’s 25th.

In Renaissance Rome, the facades of many prominent buildings were painted with elaborate narrative frescoes. Once part of the fabric of the city, only a few now remain. Using works from the Getty’s collection, including the celebrated drawings series "Early Life of Taddeo Zuccaro" in which murals play a central role, the exhibition explores this popular Renaissance phenomenon.

This exhibition complements Judy Baca: Hitting the Wall.

Gracing a freeway underpass in downtown Los Angeles, Judy Baca’s Hitting the Wall mural is one of the city’s most iconic works of art. To underline the ongoing vulnerability of mural art, this focused display highlights the design, painting, destruction, and renewal of Baca’s 1984 artwork. The presentation will include preliminary sketches, colorations, and an actual-size reproduction of a part of the mural.

This exhibition complements The Lost Murals of Renaissance Rome.

Generous support from Rob Lovelace and Alicia Miñana