Collecting Käthe Kollwitz with Dr. Richard Simms

Getty Art + Ideas
Getty Art + Ideas
Collecting Käthe Kollwitz with Dr. Richard Simms
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Käthe Kollwitz (1867–1945) was a prolific printmaker whose work explored painful themes such as hunger, poverty, and death. To achieve her powerful results, she employed a wide range of printing techniques and created numerous drawings and working proofs as part of her process. A new exhibition at the Getty Research Institute, Käthe Kollwitz: Prints, Process, Politics, showcases her working methods through pieces donated as a partial gift in 2016 by Dr. Richard. A. Simms. 

Simms, born in New Orleans 1926 and a dentist and orthodontist by trade, is a dedicated collector of prints and drawings who came to Kollwitz’s work by chance. The Dr. Richard A. Simms Collection at the GRI contains more than 650 nineteenth- and twentieth-century works by Kollwitz.

In this episode, Dr. Simms discusses his unusual path to becoming a collector and the appeal of Kollwitz’s art. Getty Research Institute exhibitions coordinator Christa Aube, who co-curated the exhibition with Louis Marchesano and Naoko Takahatake, joins the conversation to lend insight into Kollwitz’s working methods.

For images, transcripts, and more, visit getty.edu/podcasts.

Responding to Disaster: The Getty Fire

Getty Art + Ideas
Getty Art + Ideas
Responding to Disaster: The Getty Fire
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Southern California has always faced wildfires, but in recent years the threat has grown. Both the Getty Center and the Getty Villa are situated in the Santa Monica Mountains and surrounded by brushland, making them particularly vulnerable to the increased fire risk. In October 2019, the eponymous “Getty Fire” roared through the Santa Monicas near the Getty Center for days. But the Getty staff were prepared for just such a situation.

In this episode, we hear about the preparation for and response to the Getty Fire from Getty’s director of security Bob Combs; director of facilities Mike Rogers; vice president of communications Lisa Lapin; and chief financial officer and chief operating officer Steve Olsen.

For images, transcripts, and more, visit getty.edu/podcasts