Wind flow and comfort study of $1.6-billion museum and research center on 110-acre hilltop site to improve outdoor use and dining for patrons.

Weidlinger Associates performed a wind analysis of the Getty Center campus. The complex, which occupies a 110-acre hilltop site, consists of six buildings that house the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Getty Research Institute for the History of Art and the Humanities, the Getty Conservation Institute, the Getty Education Institute for the Arts, the Getty Information Institute, the Getty Trust offices, the Getty Grant Program, and an auditorium and restaurant/cafe. The $1.6 billion Art Museum and Research Center was completed in 1997. Outdoor seating, particularly outdoor dining, posed problems for the architectural designers, as the hilltop location ensured strong winds from opposing directions. Weidlinger studied the local wind climatology, conducted field tests and wind tunnel tests, and established natural wind screen configurations that allowed patrons year-round outdoor use of the facility.

Completion Date: 1997
Location: Los Angeles, California
Owner or Client: J Paul Getty Trust
Prime Consultant(s): WAI Prime; Richard Meier & Associates