Public Programs
 

Handling Sessions

The Getty Villa
Educator Sabina Miller facilitates a handling session.

Ever wonder what it would be like to take a museum object out of its case for a closer look? Try the next best thing! Join an educator on select days at the Getty Villa and handle replica objects along with the materials and tools that ancient artists used to create the works of art on display in the galleries.

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Currently in the series

 
Head of a Bearded Man, Greek, 160 - 150 B.C., marble

Marble Carving

Date: Sundays, through August 2013
Time: 11:00 a.m.–noon
Location: Getty Villa, Reading Room
Admission: Free

How were blocks of rough stone carved into sensuous sculptures? Find out in this multisensory handling session! Touch tools and materials used by ancient sculptors, including chisels, points, and rasps. Discover also how marble sculptures were once painted in brilliant colors. Complements the exhibition Sicily: Art and Invention between Greece and Rome. This is a free, drop-in program.

Video: Watch a sculptor demonstrate traditional marble carving tools and techniques.


Next in the series

 
Wall Fragment with a Peacock, Roman, A.D. 70. Plaster and pigment.

Fresco Painting

Date: Sundays, September 2013 through March 2014
Time: 11:00 a.m.–noon
Location: Getty Villa, Reading Room
Admission: Free

How were ancient frescoes painted into wet plaster? Learn about the oldest-known painting medium in this multisensory handling session. Touch tools and materials used by ancient wall painters, including plaster, marble dust, sand, pigments, and trowels.


Recently in the series

Explore Greek Vases through handling and close looking.
 
Storage Jar with the Judgment of Paris, Greek, Athens, about 360 B.C., terracotta, pigment, and gold
Greek Vases
January through March 2013

How were Greek vases made? Find out in this multisensory handling session! Touch tools and materials used by ancient potters and painters, ranging from riverbed clays to mouse whisker brushes. Discover the hidden techniques used to shape and decorate these ancient painted vessels. Come to a Handling Session today, and you'll never see a Greek Vase the same way again! This is a free, drop-in program.

Video: Watch a potter demonstrate ancient pottery-making techniques.

Learn about the Getty Conservation Institute's Athenian Pottery Project.


How to Get Here
The Getty Villa is located at 17985 Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California, approximately 25 miles west of downtown Los Angeles. See Hours, Directions, Parking for directions and parking information.