Several museums and galleries in Los Angeles are closing or have closed due to three large, rapidly moving wildfires in the area.
The Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday that the Palisades fire has burned more than 5,000 acres in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood and is moving westward toward Malibu; the Eaton fire has burned more than 10,000 acres in Altadena and Pasadena; and the Hurst fire has burned more than 500 acres in the area around Sylmar. The three brushfires have resulted in the loss of thousands of homes, businesses, and landmarks, prompting widespread evacuation orders, abandoned cars, and closures.
The Getty Villa was already closed on Tuesday before its grounds caught fire in the evening after flames continued to quickly travel through Pacific Palisades. The museum and its staff were not harmed, but some trees and vegetation had burned, according to a statement issued by the Getty.
The Getty Villa is one of the two main venues of the Getty Museum, one of the biggest institutions in Los Angeles. It houses many of the Getty’s most important antiquities from ancient Greece and Rome. It will remain closed through January 13.
The Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena is regularly closed on Wednesdays. A museum spokesperson told ARTnews the institution was safe and secure and not in the evacuation zone of the Eaton Fire. “A number of our security and facilities staff are onsite and keeping in close contact with Pasadena emergency teams,” vice president of external affairs Leslie Denk said in her email. “The Museum is closed on Wednesdays and will stay closed Thursday and Friday. We will be monitoring conditions to determine when it’s safe and appropriate to reopen.”
The University of California Los Angeles campus is currently open, but the Hammer Museum‘s website said it was closed on Wednesday due to the nearby fires and ongoing weather warnings. ARTnews also reached out to the university’s Fowler Museum, but has not yet heard back.
Other arts institutions that were closed on January 8 included the the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens, the Grand Avenue location of the Museum Of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, both campuses of the ArtCenter College of Design, as well as the Los Angeles locations of M+B Gallery, Lisson Gallery, and Sean Kelly Gallery.
“The city urges residents to stay indoors due to poor air quality and to keep roads clear so emergency responders can carry out their life-saving efforts,” Sean Kelly Gallery wrote in its post on Instagram. “Please stay safe and take care.”
All three galleries said they planned to reopen tomorrow.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated with developments.
