Stendahl’s World: Marketing Ancient Mexico and Modern Art in Los Angeles

Exhibition
Sepia photo of a man with white hair behind a table filled with Mesoamerican statuettes

Earl Stendahl with Maya Figurines, ca. 1960s (detail), Florence Homolka. Photo © Florence Homolka. Getty Research Institute, 2017.M.38

Around 1940, after decades of selling landscapes and Modern paintings, Earl Stendahl turned to Mexican antiquities, transforming the market for pre-Hispanic art in Los Angeles and beyond. Stendahl Art Galleries promoted the ancient artifacts of Mexico as commodities for both museum and private collections, launching exhibitions across the United States and Europe and building on Hollywood connections for product placement in advertising campaigns. Meanwhile, archaeological sites in Mexico suffered irreparable depredations.

​​This exhibition is presented in English and Spanish.
Esta exhibición se presenta en inglés y en español.

Jun 23, 2026–Oct 18, 2026

Getty Center

Research Institute, Gallery R101

Free

All exhibitions are included in your free, timed-entry reservation to Getty. Reservations are available six weeks in advance. Please note, there is a fee for parking.

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Publications

Artifacts to Art

Collecting Ancient America in Midcentury L.A.
$30/£26
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