Why the Getty Center Is the Safest Place for Art During a Fire (2019)
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Re: Why the Getty Center Is the Safest Place for Art During a Fire (2019)
#2Note: while this is a 2019 article, the Getty Center has not burned during the 2025 Palisades fire.
Re: Why the Getty Center Is the Safest Place for Art During a Fire (2019)
#3Additional Context: The Getty Villa which is on the border of Malibu and Pacific Palisades was the structure that was threatened by fire directly. This article is about the Getty Center which lies in Brentwood and fires did not reach it.
Center: 1200 Getty Center Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90049
Villa: 17985 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272
Re: Why the Getty Center Is the Safest Place for Art During a Fire (2019)
#4I guess it is too expensive to have a fm-200 based fire suppression system? They say they have sprinklers as a last resort but I’m guessing it would destroy most of the art if you needed to use them.
Re: Why the Getty Center Is the Safest Place for Art During a Fire (2019)
#5I guess it is too expensive to have a fm-200 based fire suppression system? They say they have sprinklers as a last resort but I’m guessing it would destroy most of the art if you needed to use them.
Most art is sealed into covered frames. You also design fire suppression sprinklers to start in outer rooms. Smoke is a far greater danger to art in a fire.
Re: Why the Getty Center Is the Safest Place for Art During a Fire (2019)
#6Additional Context: The Getty Villa which is on the border of Malibu and Pacific Palisades was the structure that was threatened by fire directly. This article is about the Getty Center which lies in Brentwood and fires did not reach it. Center: 1200 Getty Center Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90049 Villa: 17985 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272
The reason this article is likely appearing now is because the Getty Center proper is currently in a zone which is under evacuation orders:
"The Getty Center, situated in Brentwood, draws 1.8 million visitors annually and houses hundreds of centuries-old art pieces from renowned artists such as Van Gogh, Rembrandt and Monet.
But even though as of Saturday, the center was included in a mandatory evacuation zone as a result of the Palisades Fire expansion into Brentwood, the center insisted its campus is the "safest place possible" for its massive art collection."
https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/heres-how-the-getty...
This news report links the the article posted.
As of my check right now (1/12/25, noon Pacific Time), the Palisades Fire is still only 11% contained, so it's not yet over.
Re: Why the Getty Center Is the Safest Place for Art During a Fire (2019)
#7Very interesting to see the thought put into it. And given the cultural and historic significance, they’re literally irreplaceable. Must be a fun exercise in incident management and prevention.
I found this interesting too - https://www.getty.edu/news/the-hidden-engineering-protecting...
An article about their approach to earthquake protection.
In both cases it looks like they’re leading these sorts of engineering developments.
Re: Why the Getty Center Is the Safest Place for Art During a Fire (2019)
#8Additional Context: The Getty Villa which is on the border of Malibu and Pacific Palisades was the structure that was threatened by fire directly. This article is about the Getty Center which lies in Brentwood and fires did not reach it. Center: 1200 Getty Center Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90049 Villa: 17985 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272
The reason this article is likely appearing now is because the Getty Center proper is currently in a zone which is under evacuation orders: "The Getty Center, situated in Brentwood, draws 1.8 million visitors annually and houses hundreds of centuries-old art pieces from renowned artists such as Van Gogh, Rembrandt and Monet. But even though as of Saturday, the center was included in a mandatory evacuation zone as a r…
Oh I know, I live very close to there. I just wanted to add insight for those that might not be familiar with those being two separate things.
Re: Why the Getty Center Is the Safest Place for Art During a Fire (2019)
#9I guess it is too expensive to have a fm-200 based fire suppression system? They say they have sprinklers as a last resort but I’m guessing it would destroy most of the art if you needed to use them.
Most art is sealed into covered frames. You also design fire suppression sprinklers to start in outer rooms. Smoke is a far greater danger to art in a fire.
The art at the Getty is not sealed.
Re: Why the Getty Center Is the Safest Place for Art During a Fire (2019)
#10I guess it is too expensive to have a fm-200 based fire suppression system? They say they have sprinklers as a last resort but I’m guessing it would destroy most of the art if you needed to use them.
Did some googling, and from what I can find, there’s one fm-200 based museum suppression system in Cincinnati - which is also the home of Proctor and Gamble, a manufacturer of Hydrofluorocarbons.
I’m guessing there’s a pretty good reason no one put these in museums/ they tried and they didn’t work.
I tend to think of property insurance companies having goals that are the most “morally aligned” with the goals of civilization.
They don’t want fires, floods, etc to happen, or they lose money. They spend a lot of money researching climate patterns and construction standards, lobby for climate policies and new building standards, etc.
I’m sure insuring a museum and the risk of a payout is a dicey endeavor. The companies insuring them have probably lit many mock-museums on fire to decide what suppression system/ designs they’ll insure