Getty Conservation Institute

The Getty Conservation Institute (GCI) is a private, international research and professional-services institute operated as a program of the J. Paul Getty Trust. Based in Los Angeles at the Getty Center, with additional facilities and activities associated with the Getty Villa, it works to improve the theory and practice of conserving cultural heritage. The institute began operating in 1985 and combines scientific research, professional education, field projects, publications, and information resources. GCI's work spans both movable and immovable heritage. Its scientists investigate the composition, aging, deterioration, and treatment of materials found in paintings, photographs, sculptures, archaeological objects, buildings, and historic sites. Research may involve non-invasive and micro-analytical methods such as infrared, ultraviolet, X-ray, imaging, spectroscopy, and related laboratory techniques. The institute has studied subjects including museum pollutants, photographic processes, modern paints, plastics, outdoor sculpture, sandstone deterioration, and the environmental conditions required for sustainable collection care. The goal is not simply to treat individual objects, but to generate methods and evidence that can be applied by museums, archives, libraries, conservators, architects, and heritage authorities more broadly. Education and dissemination are central to the institute's role. GCI provides workshops, symposia, seminars, professional development courses, guest-scholar residencies, technical publications, guidelines, and online resources. Its training has addressed collection emergencies, photographs, materials characterization, site management, documentation, and sustainable conservation. The institute has also supported longer-term academic development, including collaboration connected with graduate education in conservation of cultural heritage. AATA Online, a literature-abstract database for conservation and preservation research, is among the information resources associated with the Getty conservation program. Field projects are selected for their potential to produce broadly useful knowledge, raise public awareness, and support cultural heritage in partnership with local institutions, communities, and public authorities. Examples include work at the Mogao Caves and Yungang Grottoes in China, the rock paintings of Sierra de San Francisco in Mexico, heritage sites in Iraq, Tutankhamun's tomb in Egypt, and the Church of Kuñotambo in Peru. The institute has also worked on modern heritage, including the Eames House and the Salk Institute, through research into modern materials, conservation-management planning, and maintenance strategies. GCI is not a commercial consumer brand and does not primarily sell physical products. Its institutional value lies in trusted expertise, scientific capability, open knowledge, training, and carefully selected collaborative projects. It operates according to Getty Trust principles emphasizing service, philanthropy, teaching, and access. Its public-facing identity is therefore positioned around independent conservation knowledge and capacity building for the international cultural heritage community.

The Getty Conservation Institute was established as a program of the J. Paul Getty Trust and commenced operation in 1985. From its beginning, the institute was designed to address conservation as an international field of knowledge rather than as a service limited to the Getty's own collections. Its remit brought together scientific investigation, professional education, practical field work, and the publication of results for wider use. The scientific program has examined how cultural heritage materials change and deteriorate, and how those processes can be slowed or treated. Research has covered art materials, photographs, stone, architectural materials, modern paints, plastics, environmental pollutants, and the effects of indoor and outdoor climate. GCI scientists have used analytical approaches capable of identifying material composition while minimizing or avoiding damage to objects. Work on photographic processes, for example, has contributed to the effort to document the chemical signatures of the many processes used to make photographs. Other studies have addressed the deterioration of sandstone and the conservation of works made with modern and unconventional paints. The institute has also developed practical tools that connect laboratory research with on-site conservation. A portable X-ray diffraction system known as X-Duetto was developed for non-destructive examination of cultural objects and sites. The broader environmental research program has investigated collection climates, pollutant monitoring, climate-control strategies, and sustainable approaches for museums, libraries, and archives. Modern and Contemporary Art Research Initiative projects have addressed outdoor sculpture, protective coatings, cleaning, modern paints, and plastics. Conservation investigations of works such as Jackson Pollock's Mural and Willem de Kooning's Woman-Ochre illustrate how material analysis can inform treatment decisions and revise assumptions about an artwork's making or subsequent damage. Education became a major means of extending the institute's impact. GCI has organized workshops, courses, seminars, and international symposia for conservators, scientists, museum personnel, architects, archaeologists, and other heritage professionals. Topics have included emergency preparedness, photographic conservation, documentation, materials, preventive conservation, site management, and sustainable practice. The institute has also hosted Conservation Guest Scholars, enabling experienced practitioners to pursue independent research with access to Getty resources and colleagues. Its publication program and online resources disseminate research beyond participants in individual projects. The RecorDIM project, conducted with heritage-documentation partners from 2003 to 2007, focused on improving the creation, management, interpretation, and use of documentation in conservation decision-making. GCI's field activities have applied this research in partnership with institutions and communities around the world. Projects have included conservation planning and technical work at the Mogao Caves and Yungang Grottoes in China, prehistoric rock paintings in Baja California Sur, and cultural heritage in Iraq after the beginning of the Iraq War. In Egypt, a 2009–2019 project at the tomb of Tutankhamun investigated large brown spots in the wall paintings. Analysis indicated that the spots were no longer biologically active, but because they had penetrated the paint layers they could not simply be removed. The project therefore emphasized stabilization, environmental management, filtration, infrastructure improvements, and continued visitor access. The institute later expanded its attention to modern built heritage. The Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative, launched in 2012, responds to the conservation problems of postwar buildings and materials, many of which reached their first major repair cycles decades after construction. GCI's collaboration with the Eames Foundation on the Eames House Conservation Management Plan began in 2011 and examined materials, moisture, asbestos, monitoring, and long-term maintenance. Work with the Salk Institute addressed the aging of concrete, glass, and teak window-wall assemblies in a marine environment. Through the Earthen Architecture Initiative, GCI has researched seismic risk and lower-loss retrofitting methods for historic earthen buildings, including the Church of Kuñotambo in Peru. In Los Angeles, Getty conservation and heritage-documentation work has also supported HistoricPlacesLA, an online inventory developed with the City of Los Angeles. The project records sites of architectural, social, and cultural significance, including modernist and African American heritage. Across these programs, GCI's institutional model has remained consistent: produce rigorous conservation knowledge, train professionals to use it, test approaches through collaborative projects, and make results accessible so that responsibility for heritage can continue after Getty participation ends.

• 2020

  African American Historic Places Los Angeles expands

  [1]Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  The Los Angeles heritage-documentation effort expands identification and public recognition of sites associated with African American history.

• 2019

  Tutankhamun project period ends

  [1]Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  The stated 2009–2019 phase of GCI's Tutankhamun tomb conservation work concludes.

• 2012

  Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative launches

  [1]Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  GCI launches an initiative devoted to research, training, and model projects for twentieth-century architecture.

• 2011

  Eames House conservation planning begins

  [1]Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  GCI and the Eames Foundation begin work on a conservation management plan for the Eames House.

• 2009

  Tutankhamun tomb conservation project starts

  [1]Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  GCI begins a long-term project addressing the wall paintings, environmental conditions, infrastructure, and visitor management at Tutankhamun's tomb.

• 2007

  RecorDIM project concludes

  [1]Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  The project concludes with publications and guidance on recording, documentation, and information management for heritage places.

• 2003

  RecorDIM project begins

  [1]Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  A documentation and information-management project begins to improve the quality and use of records in heritage conservation.

• 1994

  Sierra de San Francisco rock-painting project

  [1]Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  GCI works on the conservation of prehistoric rock paintings in Sierra de San Francisco, Baja California Sur.

• 1989

  Chinese cave-temple conservation work announced

  [1]Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  GCI undertakes or announces field efforts connected with the conservation of the Mogao Caves and Yungang Grottoes in China.

• 1985

  Institute begins operation

  [1]Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  The Getty Conservation Institute begins operating as a program of the J. Paul Getty Trust in Los Angeles.

An international, research-led conservation institute combining science, education, open dissemination, and collaborative field practice to strengthen cultural heritage conservation worldwide.

• Research service · 1985

  Scientific conservation research

  Laboratory and field research investigates the composition, deterioration, environmental response, and treatment of materials used in art, architecture, archaeology, and visual culture. Methods include imaging, spectroscopy, X-ray analysis, and other non-invasive or micro-analytical techniques.

• Education service · 1985

  Professional education and training

  GCI offers workshops, courses, seminars, and symposia for conservators and other heritage professionals. Subjects range from preventive conservation and emergency response to photographs, materials, documentation, site management, and sustainable environmental practice.

• Information resource

  AATA Online

  AATA Online is a conservation and preservation literature database providing abstracts and bibliographic access to research articles, conference proceedings, and related professional literature organized across materials, techniques, and disciplines.

• Heritage service · 1985

  Conservation field projects

  Collaborative projects apply conservation research and planning to monuments, archaeological sites, collections, and modern buildings. Projects are selected for their potential to produce transferable knowledge and are intended to support local capacity and continuing stewardship.

• 2020African American Historic Places Los Angeles

  United States

  A HistoricPlacesLA effort focused on identifying, protecting, and publicly interpreting Los Angeles places connected with African American history.

  Outcome. The effort identified sites for possible historic-cultural designation and incorporated internships and community programs.

  Source
• 2012Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative

  International

  A research and training initiative addressing the conservation of twentieth-century architecture, modern materials, and postwar buildings through publications, professional programs, and model field projects.

  Outcome. Expanded conservation knowledge and professional attention to modern architectural heritage.

  Source
• 2011Eames House Conservation Management Plan

  United States

  GCI collaborated with the Eames Foundation to document the house, investigate its modern materials, and establish a basis for long-term conservation and maintenance.

  Outcome. The work informed measures including asbestos removal, moisture management, and monitoring.

  Source

• 2012

  Prioritize conservation of modern architectureStrategy

  Background

  Many postwar buildings and modern materials were reaching their first major repair cycles, while conservation practice for them remained comparatively underdeveloped.

  Action taken

  GCI established the Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative to combine material research, professional training, publications, and international and local model projects.

  Aftermath

  The initiative broadened GCI's built-heritage agenda toward twentieth-century architecture and its distinctive materials.

  Source

• 2009

  Adopt stabilization and environmental management at Tutankhamun's tombStrategy

  Background

  Investigations found large brown spots in the tomb's wall paintings. Analysis indicated that the spots were no longer an active biological threat, but they had penetrated the paint layers.

  Action taken

  GCI emphasized stabilization, air filtration, infrastructure improvements, new flooring and railings, and continued monitoring rather than attempting to remove the spots.

  Aftermath

  The approach sought to protect the paintings while preserving public access to the tomb.

  Source

1. 1Getty Conservation Instituteen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Getty Conservation Institute official websitegetty.edu