The Villa closed on Jan. 7 as the Palisades Fire burned through the surrounding area. The museum itself did not sustain any damage in the Palisades Fire -- the grounds, however, did.
The Getty lost around 1,300 trees, and the irrigation and security systems melted. Thankfully, staff members were able to protect the buildings and priceless art collections inside the museum.
Since then, crews have been working to repair the damages to the grounds as quickly as possible. They haven't erased all the evidence of the fire, though -- they say this is in honor of all this community has endured.
"We didn't want to sort of erase the fact that this had happened," J. Paul Getty Trust spokesperson Katherine Elizabeth Fleming said. "The Getty is always thought of as a really beautiful place, and I think it might have been the initial impulse to try and get everything back to the way it was as swiftly as possible. But we realized that it was really important, actually, that we leave some of the natural markers in our gardens that show that we have been through this fire. With time, they aren't going to show nearly as clearly anymore, and that itself will be kind of a nice thing to witness."
To kick off the reopening, the Villa is set to debut its newest exhibit, "The Kingdom of Pylos," which features more than 230 works of Messenian art and artifacts. Many of the pieces are being seen for the first time in the United States.
Friday's reopening is expected to bring crowds. While admission is free, reservations are sold out until July 7, with the museum only allowing 500 people in each day.
"I'm so happy it survived. It's a miracle," said Lynne Schepartz, a visitor from Tucson, Arizona. "I understand they had some strategic plans in place, but we saw some of the burning on the way here."