Museum Home Past Exhibitions The Aztec Pantheon and the Art of Empire

March 24–July 5, 2010 at the Getty Villa

EnglishEspanolEventsPublications
 
Related Events

All events are free, unless otherwise noted.

Admission to the Getty Villa is FREE. For visitor information, see information on planning a visit or call (310) 440-7300. All events are free, unless otherwise noted. Tickets are required for symposia, lectures, performances, and courses.

Programming made possible by
Chase

Talks and Tours

Exhibition Tours
Scholars from the Renaissance found many parallels between the Aztec and Roman empires. Inspired by the exhibition, this one-hour tour examines the connections between the two cultures by discussing masterworks of Aztec sculpture and Europe's encounter with the New World. Free with your advance, timed ticket to the Getty Villa. Meet at the Tour Meeting Place outside the Museum Entrance.

Wednesdays and Thursdays, April 8–July 1, 2010, 2:00 p.m.
Fridays and Saturdays, March 27–July 3, 2010, 3:00 p.m.

Exhibition Tours en español
During the Renaissance, European scholars routinely drew parallels between the Aztec and Roman empires. This one-hour tour en español examines the connections between the two cultures by discussing masterworks of Aztec sculpture and Europe's encounter with the New World. Meet at the Tour Meeting Place outside the Museum Entrance. Free; a ticket is required. Call (310) 440-7300 to sign up.

Saturday, April 17, 2010, 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
Sunday, April 25, 2010, 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
Thursday, May 6, 2010, 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
Sunday, June 6, 2010, 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

Family Tours en español
This 45-minute journey through the exhibition is a fun, activity-filled experience for children (ages 5 and up) and adults to enjoy together. Discover the art of the ancient Aztecs en español. Meet at the Tour Meeting Place outside the Museum Entrance. Free; a ticket is required.

Sundays, April 4 and 25, 2010, 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
Saturdays, May 8 and 15, 2010, 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

Curator's Gallery Talks
Claire Lyons, curator of antiquities, the J. Paul Getty Museum, gives an hour-long tour of the exhibition. Free with your advance, timed ticket to the Getty Villa.

Thursdays, April 22 and May 20, 2010, 3:00 p.m.

John Pohl, co-curator of the exhibition, gives an hour-long tour of the exhibition. Free with your advance, timed ticket to the Getty Villa.

Thursday, April 1 and May 6, 2010, 3:00 p.m.

Symposium

Altera Roma: Art and Empire from the Aztecs to New Spain
International scholars examine the contexts in which classicism mediated a dialogue between Mesoamerica and Europe in the 1500s–1700s, when parallels were drawn between the Old World past and the pre-Hispanic cultures of the New World. Registration fee $15/day, $10/day for students. Includes parking, coffee/tea service, and reception on Friday evening.

Learn more about this symposium.

Friday, April 30, 2010, 10:30 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 1, 2010, 10:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
Getty Villa, Auditorium

Lectures

Nahua Artists and the Aztec Legacy in the Florentine Codex
Diana Magaloni Kerpel, director of the Museo Nacional de Antropología in Mexico City, shares her research on the Florentine Codex. Free; a ticket is required.

Learn more about this lecture.

Thursday, April 29, 2010, 7:30 p.m.
Getty Villa, Auditorium

Envisioning a New World
Mary Miller, the Sterling Professor of Art History at Yale University and a renowned authority on Mesoamerican art and archaeology, investigates the intersections of Aztec mythology and classical antiquity in the early modern period, when the Toltec capital of Tollan was compared with imperial Rome, and deities such as Tlaloc and Tlazolteotl were depicted as New World equivalents of Apollo and Venus.

Learn more about this lecture.

Wednesday, June 2, 2010, 7:30 p.m.
Getty Villa, Auditorium

Gallery Courses

The Aztecs: The Art and Imagery of Power
What does Aztec art tell us about the civilization on the eve of the Spanish Conquest? Explore the figural imagery and symbolism of this fascinating culture with art historian and UCLA professor Cecelia Klein. A tour of the exhibition follows the illustrated lecture. Course fee $35. Open to 30 participants.

Friday, May 14, 2010, 1:00–4:00 p.m.
Getty Villa, Meeting Rooms and Museum galleries

The Aztecs: European Art in the Age of Exploration 1492–1600: Collisions and Confluences
Learn how European culture grappled with 16th-century reports and artifacts from the so-called New World in the second part of the Aztec gallery course. UCLA professor Charlene Villaseñor Black discusses these issues in an illustrated lecture, followed by a tour of the exhibition. Course fee $35. Open to 30 participants.

Friday, May 21, 2010, 1:00–4:00 p.m.
Getty Villa, Meeting Rooms and Museum galleries

Culinary Workshops

Dining in the Aztec Empire
At the time of the Spanish Conquest of Mexico, Tenochtitlan (the Aztec capital) was one of the largest cities in the world. The array of foods and luxury goods in the markets astonished the conquistadors. Learn how the discovery of the Americas influenced European food, then cook—and enjoy—an ancient Aztec meal. Course is offered six times. Course fee $80. Open to 16 participants at each session.

April sessions

Friday, April 23, 2010, 1:00–4:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 24, 2010, 1:00–4:30 p.m.
Sunday, April 25, 2010, 1:00–4:30 p.m.
Getty Villa, Education Studio

June sessions

Friday, June 4, 2010, 1:00–4:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 5, 2010, 1:00–4:30 p.m.
Sunday, June 6, 2010, 1:00–4:30 p.m.
Getty Villa, Education Studio

 
Sones de Mexico

Theater

Villa Theater Lab: Piedra de Sol (Sunstone)
The CalArts' Center for New Performance (CNP) presents Piedra de Sol (Sunstone), adapted and directed by María Morett. Based on the eponymous Aztec-influenced surrealist love poem of the same name by the late Nobel laureate Octavio Paz, this multimedia performance weaves passages in Spanish, English, and Nahuatl. Tickets $7.

Learn more about Villa Theater Lab.

Friday, May 14, 2010, 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 15, 2010, 3:00 and 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 16, 2010, 3:00 p.m.
Getty Villa, Auditorium

Family Activities

Family Workshop: Creating a Codex
Discover the Florentine Codex, a 450-year-old account of Aztec culture, in this family workshop. Explore the history of the book and then design your own version! Open to families with children ages 8–12. At least one adult must register with each family. Free; a ticket is required. Space is limited.

Saturday, March 27, 2010, 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 10, 2010, 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 17, 2010, 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 1, 2010, 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 8, 2010, 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
Getty Villa, Education Studio

Family Festival
Experience Aztec art firsthand with a family festival that explores the rich cultural traditions of Aztec and pre-Hispanic Mexico. Enjoy music and dance created in Mexico before the arrival of Columbus, create your own Aztec mask, or make your own codex based upon the traditions of Nahua culture. Free; a ticket is required.

Learn more about Family Festivals at the Getty Villa.

Saturday, May 22, 2010, 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Getty Villa, Outer Peristyle and Auditorium

What's It to You?
Drop in for hands-on family activities! Learn about what the symbol of the mighty eagle meant to the Aztecs and the Romans, then create your own work of art about what the animal means to you. Free with your advance, timed ticket to the Getty Villa.

Daily except Tuesdays (and except Sunday, April 4), March 28–April 9, 2010, 11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
Getty Villa, Outer Peristyle

From the Moon's Navel: A Family Concert with Sones de México
Acclaimed cultural ambassadors, Grammy-nominated Sones de México present a special program just for families. Discover the magic of traditional songs and dances, legends and myths at this joy-filled, interactive concert. Perfect for kids 6 years and older. Free; a ticket is required for each attendee, including children.

Learn more about Concerts at the Villa.

Sunday, April 11, 2010, 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m.
Getty Villa, Auditorium

Concert

Songs from the Fifth Age: Sones de México in Concert
Whether a source of pride or a muse for cultural expression, Aztec civilization has captivated and inspired people for more than five centuries. Grammy-nominated Sones de México has garnered accolades far and wide for turning fresh eyes to this rich legacy. Tickets $25; $15 students/seniors.

Learn more about Concerts at the Villa.

Saturday, April 10, 2010, 8:00 p.m.
Getty Villa, Auditorium

GettyGuide™

Listen to curators and scholars from Mexico and Los Angeles discuss the magnificence and mystery of the Aztec world. Pick up an audio player for $5 on the first floor of the Museum or in the Entry Pavilion at the Getty Villa.

Related Exhibition

Obsidian Mirror-Travels: Refracting Ancient Mexican Art and Archaeology
This exhibition explores representations of Mexican archaeological objects and sites made from the Colonial era to the present. Featuring images of ancient Maya and Aztec ruins by archaeologist explorers such as John Lloyd Stephens, Desiré Charnay, and Augustus and Alice Le Plongeon, the exhibition showcases depictions of the Aztec Calendar Stone and other Mexican antiquities as well as panoramic visions of Mexico—all in the context of the Spanish conquest, the 19th-century French intervention in Mexico, and the lengthy presidency of Porfirio Díaz (1876–1910). Some of the works exhibited are accurate, while others are fanciful; each portrays a distinct vision of Mexico.

Learn more about exhibitions at the Getty Research Institute.

November 16, 2010–March 27, 2011
Getty Center, Research Institute Exhibition Gallery