The Getty Center

The Getty Center is an amazing complex set high in the hills surrounding L.A. I was a bit ambivalent about going because while I like art I wasn't sure if I could spend an entire day looking at pictures. In fact I was much more than just an art gallery and I could have spent days there.

The first thing that strikes you, even before you arrive, is the complex itself. I know nothing about architecture yet even I can tell that it is an architectural marvel. The buildings seem to frame each other and the white marble is stunning against the everpresent blue sky.

We decided to go a highlights tour which went around the four main collections and went into detail about one piece in each collection. We then had lunch and afterwards we had a look at a special exhibition taking place on a 17th century female artist called Maria Sibylla Merian who produced scientific drawings of plants, birds and insects and discovered that caterpillers metamorphose into butterflies. The artwork was stunning and it was fantastic to see this scientist finally being recognised.

Probably the most exciting gallery was the impressionist paintings. There were paintings by Van Gogh, Monet, Sisley and a load of other impressionists. The most incredible thing was you were allowed to photograph the paintings!! This is a close-up of 'Irises' by Van Gogh.

The Getty Center also has spectacular gardens. They look quite small from the outside but the winding paths and the huge number of plants means that they take a long time to look around.

I loved the Getty. Everything about it was stunning. The building, the galleries, the temporary exhibitions, the views. It was huge and had far more stuff than can be properly seen in one day. I would go back in a heartbeat!