If you’ve ever driven down the 405 in Los Angeles when the Santa Ana winds are howling, you’ve probably seen it. The Getty Center sits on its hill like a travertine acropolis, gleaming white against the scrubby, tinder-dry brush of the Sepulveda Pass. It looks vulnerable. When the Skirball Fire broke out in 2017, the images were terrifying: orange flames licking at the edges of the freeway, smoke billowing so thick you couldn't see the ridgeline. People across the globe were panicking, wondering: did the Getty Museum survive the fire?
The short answer? Yes. It didn't just survive; it barely broke a sweat.
Honestly, the Getty is probably the safest place in California during a wildfire. While homeowners in Bel Air were frantically packing heirlooms into SUVs, the curators at the Getty were staying put. They didn't even evacuate the art. That sounds reckless, right? You’ve got billions of dollars worth of Van Goghs, Rembrandts, and Roman antiquities sitting in a building surrounded by burning hills, and you don't move them? It sounds like a gamble. But it’s not. It’s high-level engineering.
Why the Getty is Basically a Fire-Breathing Dragon’s Worst Nightmare
When architect Richard Meier designed the Getty Center, which opened in 1997, he wasn't just thinking about the "aesthetic of white." He was building a fortress. The entire complex is a masterclass in fire suppression.
First, let's talk about the stone. The museum is clad in 1.2 million square feet of Italian travertine. This isn't just for looks. Travertine is essentially a type of limestone; it’s incredibly fire-resistant. Unlike wood or even some types of metal that warp under extreme heat, that stone stays cool. Underneath that, the bones of the building are reinforced concrete and steel. There is almost nothing on the exterior of the Getty that can actually catch fire.
Then you have the "crush zone."
The landscape architects didn't just plant pretty flowers. They meticulously cleared "defensible space." They used fire-resistant plants like succulents and specifically thinned out the highly flammable chaparral. They even have a herd of goats that comes in regularly to eat the brush. It’s low-tech, but it works. When the Skirball Fire hit, the fire literally ran out of fuel before it could get close to the walls.
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The Sophisticated Air We Breathe
One of the biggest threats to art isn't actually the flame—it’s the smoke. Carbon and ash are invasive. They get into the tiniest crevices of a painting's canvas or the pores of a marble statue. This is where most people get the Getty’s survival story wrong. They think the fire stayed away, but the smoke was everywhere.
The Getty uses a "positive pressure" HVAC system.
When the sensors detect smoke outside, the building essentially holds its breath. It stops pulling in outside air. Instead, the internal air pressure is kept slightly higher than the atmospheric pressure outside. This creates a literal wall of air that pushes out. Even if there’s a gap in a door seal, air flows out of the museum, preventing smoke from creeping in. It’s the same technology used in cleanrooms and hospitals.
The Skirball Fire and the 2019 Getty Fire Tests
In December 2017, the Skirball Fire was the real deal. It burned about 400 acres. Then, in 2019, another blaze—appropriately named the Getty Fire—broke out right along the 405. Both times, the Getty remained a sanctuary.
During the 2017 event, Ron Hartwig, who was then the Getty’s vice president of communications, was very blunt about why they didn't move the art. Moving a Van Gogh is dangerous. You risk physical damage, humidity shifts, and theft. The safest place for a painting during a fire is inside a building designed to withstand a fire.
They also have a massive underground tank holding a million gallons of water.
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This isn't just for the fountains. It’s for the internal sprinklers and the external hydrant system. If the fire department needs water to defend the ridge, the Getty has it ready to go. They have their own dedicated water infrastructure that doesn't rely solely on city lines that might lose pressure during a disaster.
It’s Not Just Luck; It’s a Philosophy
You have to realize that the Getty isn't just a building; it’s a vault. Every time a fire breaks out in the Sepulveda Pass, the internet goes into a tailspin. You'll see tweets from people miles away saying, "Save the Getty!" but the people inside are remarkably calm.
The museum staff actually trains for this. They have a sophisticated internal disaster response team. They coordinate with LAFD years in advance. When you ask did the Getty Museum survive the fire, you have to look at the fact that it was designed to be the last thing standing.
- The Roof: It's covered in crushed stone and gravel, which prevents embers (the real killers of houses) from starting spot fires.
- The Glass: It’s double-paned and specially treated to reflect heat.
- The Location: By being on a ridge, they have a 360-degree view of approaching threats.
The 2019 fire was actually started by a tree limb falling on power lines—a classic California catastrophe. Even with the fire jumping the freeway and moving uphill toward the museum, the internal sensors never even triggered an emergency "seal-in" for the galleries because the air quality remained within safe limits for the art.
What Happens if the Worst Actually Occurs?
Let's say the fire somehow breached the perimeter. What then? The Getty has a carbon dioxide fire suppression system in certain areas. Instead of dumping water on a 15th-century manuscript (which would ruin it just as effectively as fire), these systems displace oxygen to smother the flame instantly without leaving a residue.
It’s expensive. It’s complex. It’s a bit over-the-top. But when you’re holding the cultural heritage of humanity, "over-the-top" is the baseline.
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There’s a common misconception that the Getty has some kind of secret underground bunker where they slide the art during fires. That’s a total myth. The art stays on the walls. The building is the bunker. Moving objects during a crisis is when accidents happen. Dropping a vase because you're rushing to escape smoke is a much higher risk than the smoke itself at the Getty.
Lessons for the Rest of Us
We can't all afford a million-gallon water tank or a travertine exterior. But the Getty’s survival offers a blueprint for how we deal with the "New Normal" of year-round fire seasons in the West.
The success of the museum comes down to three things: defensible space, non-combustible materials, and air filtration.
If you live in a high-risk area, the Getty is proof that preparation works. They didn't survive the Skirball and Getty fires by accident. They survived because they spent hundreds of millions of dollars to ensure that fire wasn't even an option.
How to Apply the Getty’s Strategy to Your Own Life
If you’re looking to protect your own "museum" (your home), start with the "Getty Basics." It's not about fancy gadgets; it's about the physics of fire.
- Harden the Home: Focus on the roof and the vents. Most houses burn because an ember flies into an attic vent. Use fine mesh screens that embers can't get through.
- Landscaping as Defense: Clear the "Zone Zero"—the first five feet around your house. No mulch, no woody bushes, no firewood stacked against the wall. The Getty’s empty travertine plazas are the ultimate version of this.
- Indoor Air Quality: In a fire, even if your house is safe, your lungs aren't. Invest in high-MERV filters for your HVAC system or a standalone HEPA purifier. If the Getty can keep smoke away from a delicate oil painting, you can keep it away from your family.
- Digitize and Document: The Getty has a digital record of everything. You should too. If the unthinkable happens, having your "collection" documented makes the recovery process possible.
The Getty Museum didn't just survive the fire; it stood as a monument to what happens when human ingenuity takes environmental threats seriously. It remains open, its collections intact, serving as a reminder that while nature is powerful, smart engineering is a pretty good match for it.
The next time you see smoke on the horizon in Los Angeles, don't worry about the Getty. Worry about the people who haven't built their own fortresses yet. The Getty will be just fine.