Two L.A. museums are initiating their first-ever major renovations ahead of the frenzy that the summer 2028 Olympic Games will bring. The Getty Center in Brentwood has announced plans to close next March for renovations ahead of the global athletic event. Meanwhile, the George C. Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits, situated amid Wilshire Boulevard’s museum-heavy Miracle Mile, will close this July 6 to work on its refurbishments. Both institutions plan to reopen in 2028, before the games begin.
Next year will mark 30 years since the Getty Center unveiled its impressive array of European modern art to the public. Next spring, its inaugural renovation will blend necessary structural and cosmetic updates. Revitalized galleries will “bring art in dialogue with nature,” the museum noted, and introduce “exciting new artist commissions.”
The Getty Center’s tram. Photo courtesy of the Getty Museum
The Welcome Hall and tram system that shuttles guests from the parking structure to the hill-top galleries will both get facelifts. The Getty Center also plans to improve utilities like WiFi and cell service throughout. At present, the Special Exhibitions Pavilion, East Pavilion, and part of its South Pavilion have already shuttered for HVAC repair.
“Our North Pavilion will close in the summer, followed by a full South Pavilion closure later in the year,” a representative from the Getty Center told me over email. “Our West Pavilion remains open until the full center closure in March 2027.”
A WEISS/MANFREDI. rendering of the forthcoming Page Museum. Photo courtesy of the La Brea Tar Pits & Museum
Looming renovations at the nearly 50 year old Page Museum have been public knowledge since 2019. The project will overhaul the entire 13-acre campus, built around the legendary tarpits, which once trapped the many prehistoric creatures that the Page Museum now houses.
New York-based architectural firm Weiss/Manfredi is overseeing the endeavor, which “will modernize and improve access to the building,” the museum said—while unifying the campus and enhancing its storytelling. New additions will include visible research laboratories, collections storage and displays, an immersive theater, a roof terrace, and a Global Center for Ice Age Research named after philanthropist Samuel Oschin, whose foundation made a “transformational” donation to the $240 million Reimagine La Brea Tar Pits campaign.
A WEISS/MANFREDI rendering of the Page Museum’s Ramp Gallery & Rooftop Terrace that will open once the Olympic games reach L.A. Photo courtesy of the La Brea Tar Pits & Museum.
The Getty Center has already devised several contingency plans ahead of its closure. A selection of “well-known and notable works” from its collection will go on view at the Getty Villa (another Getty Museum, in Pacific Palisades) throughout the Center’s renovations. The Center will also open a new space nearby to host “special programs”—and start work on a Westwood facility to host the museum’s scholarly activities.
The Page Museum’s treasures will be under lock and key come summer. LACMA’s hotly awaited Geffen Galleries, which directly peer onto the Tar Pits campus, open April 19. That might be a good time to get a last look inside the Page, too. But, the museum has also planned a free KCRW Summer Nights with La Brea Tar Pits event featuring after-hours access and programming for June 12, and a disco-themed Last Dance at La Brea Tar Pits for June 27.
The campus’s green spaces, including its new half-mile walking path, will remain open as appropriate. Excavations at the tar pits will continue.
