Gehry Partners will design a variety of upgrades to the Getty Center — including a major revamp of its entry experience — during its upcoming year-long closure, the museum announced Thursday. A variety of other partners and firms will also join the remodel effort including WHY Architecture and OLIN landscaping.
The museum nestled in the hills above the 405 Freeway is scheduled to close next March. When it reopens, visitors will be greeted by a new arrival area, a revamped tram system including new cars, a garden cafe, a gift shop and abundant new green space.
The bulk of the announced improvements will target the arrival system, including the parking and tram boarding area, and the tram itself, but plenty of work will also be done at the top of the hill, including the addition of a new Welcome Hall.
The goal, according to a news release, is to create a more “gracious and efficient entry experience” for more than 1.4 million annual visitors. This includes school groups, which visit the museum at a rate six times higher than the Center originally anticipated when it first opened in 1997, a Getty spokesperson said.
Gehry Partners, the architecture firm established by the late Frank Gehry in 2001, released renderings of its redesign, which includes a curving glass canopy above a staircase leading to the Lower Tram entrance. There will also be additional green space designed by the landscaping firm OLIN, as well as the reinstallation of outdoor sculptures.
The tram system, which transports visitors from the parking lot to the Getty Center’s hilltop campus, is receiving its first update in its 30-year existence.
The new tram system, including its cars and propulsion system, has a higher rider capacity and is meant to increase comfort and reduce wait times. It’s manufactured by Doppelmayr, an Austria-based manufacturer of ropeways, cable cars and ski lifts with over 15,400 installations in 96 countries.
When visitors reach the hilltop, they will find an upgraded Welcome Hall designed by local firm WHY Architecture, with new features including a large information screen and an expanded bookstore with its own café.
“This comprehensive program of campus-wide upgrades will strengthen the site’s sustainability and accessibility,” said Tim Whalen, vice president of institutional planning for the J. Paul Getty Trust.
Some gallery closures have already begun to accommodate upgrades to the museum’s HVAC system and other improvement projects.
The museum will shut down for the public entirely on March 15 and is scheduled to reopen the following spring, ahead of the 2028 L.A. Olympics.
During the Getty Center’s closure, its coastal counterpart, the Getty Villa, will remain open to the public and house a special collection of works borrowed from the Center.
The Getty Center is not alone among L.A. cultural institutions revamping their facilities in anticipation of Olympic tourism. The Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits is closing down this summer for renovations that include a new entrance, expanded research labs and the addition of an immersive theater and rooftop terrace.
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