Once they’re at the top of the hill, guests find Maillol’s L’Air on the grand outdoor staircase and Giacometti’s Standing Woman I in the Museum’s Entrance Hall. The Stark Sculpture Terrace near the Museum’s West Pavilion includes Hepworth’s Figure for Landscape and Moore’s Seated Woman, among other works.
The Lower Terrace Garden features six Stark Collection sculptures, including the kinetic, wind-activated Three Squares Gyratory by George Rickey. Saul Baizerman’s Night, Giacomo Manzù’s stern Seated Cardinal, and several other pieces animate the South Terrace, on the upper level outside the Museum’s South Pavilion.
Managed by the Museum’s Decorative Arts and Sculpture Conservation department, the Starks’ gift also launched a new area of study, initiating research into the materials, techniques, and preservation of modern outdoor sculpture. The collection includes works made from cast bronze and lead, aluminum and stainless steel, painted metal, and ceramic. One area of research focused on the proper choice and application of protective wax and acrylic coatings, which are subject to accelerated aging from the intense Southern California sun. Getty has since shared the useful findings of that research in the book Conserving Outdoor Sculpture: The Stark Collection at the Getty Center.
