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🫵 This is not a drill! Here’s art you CAN touch. As a part of the Camille Claudel exhibition, two artists made replicas of the foot of Claudel’s famous “Crouching Woman” sculpture. These copies were made from various materials and methods Claudel herself would have used. Camille Claudel is on view until July 21 at the Getty Center. 🎟️ Free entry with reservation.

🏺How do we make sure ancient vases don’t topple over? With magnets, beads, and a little trial and error (using replicas, of course!). Here’s the latest technology our mountmaking studio developed... - Stirrup-Spout Vessel with Wrinkle Face Fighting Opponents, Moche, 500–800 CE. Terracotta. Fowler Museum at UCLA, Los Angeles. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Herbert L. Lucas Jr. Photo: Donald Cordy.

We’re giving away free art! Specifically, 88,000 downloadable public domain artworks available for free for any purpose you’d like under Creative Commons Zero (CC0). Let Jessie explain how to access.

Summertime and the living is...sweaty. What are your art hot takes? 🔥 Image (edited): An Ibex; Fire Stones (detail), about 1250–1260, English. Getty Museum Text Page (detail), about 1480–1490, English. Getty Museum

🍒 Discover a long lost 16th-century painting: Madonna of the Cherries by Quentin Metsys. Metsys was a famous Flemish painter during the early 1500s. He was known for his compelling portraits, sophisticated use of color, and representations of emotion and expression. Madonna of the Cherries was painted at the height of his career and is considered one of his most famous works. Why the cherries? Rich with symbolism, the cherries have celestial connotations as the "fruit of heaven," and their color signifies the future blood of Christ’s passion and sacrifice on the cross. In Los Angeles? This recently rediscovered painting just joined our collection and will go on display at the Getty Center's North Pavilion in the coming weeks. 🔗 Read more about this acquisition via the link in our bio. - Madonna of the Cherries, 1529, Quentin Metsys. Proposed acquisition Getty Museum. Image: Christie's

Trivia time! In the medieval ages, where in the world did Europeans think mythical giant snails lived? 1️⃣ France 2️⃣ Australia 3️⃣ Sri Lanka 3️⃣ Brazil Comment below and we'll let you know if you guessed correctly. But let's be honest—the answer doesn't really matter because giant snails were never a thing. Medieval Europeans were captivated by far off lands and the legends they held. 🔍 Find more funny false "facts" Medieval Europeans believed in during the 15th century at the link in our bio. 📍And if you're in Los Angeles, make sure to visit Book of Marvels: Wonder and Fear in the Middle Ages at the Getty Center until August 25. - Sri Lanka (Trapponee) (detail), about 1460–1465, Master of the Geneva Boccaccio. Getty Museum

📣 Sound on—name those noises... What does summer have to do with a cooling climate? In the late 1700s, the Dutch experienced a period of intense cooling, resulting in some of the coldest winters on record. Artists like Hendrik Meyer found solace from the chill by imagining idyllic summer scenes like this. Cool off this summer with more paintings and drawings from the Dutch 'Little Ice Age' featured in On Thin Ice, now showing at the Getty Center. - A Summer Scene, 1787, Hendrik Meyer. Getty Museum

We take our job really seriously. Anything for the shot. Happy #SocialMediaDay ! Leave a comment to get your favorite social media team a raise. P.S. The featured manuscript is: Initial R: The Resurrected Christ, about 1420–1430, Master Michael. Getty Museum.

Who’s the King of Rock and Roll? It might not be who you think. Black musicians were foundational in the evolution of rock and roll. Musicians like Fats Domino and Little Richard inspired the next generation of rock and roll artists like James Brown, Jimi Hendrix, and Prince. Many of the songs that were popularized by artists like Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis were originally created and performed by Black rock and rollers. Bo Diddley and Chuck Berry were among the first to popularize the electric guitar to propel the evolution of rhythm and blues into the rock and roll genre we know and love today. On Prince’s 1978 “For You” album, he is credited with playing all 27 instruments including electric guitar, piano, drums, bass, and various synths. By pushing boundaries and pursuing new musical and lyrical innovation, Black musicians continue to have enormous cultural influence and impact. 🎵 June is Black Music Month. We’re highlighting Black music history and visual culture with stories and images from the Johnson Publishing Company Archive, one of the most comprehensive records of Black culture in the 20th century and part of our Research Institute’s African American Art History Initiative. Images: 1. Rock star Prince is pictured performing, 1985. Photograph by James Mitchell. Johnson Publishing Company Archive. Courtesy J. Paul Getty Trust and Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. 2. Fats Domino sits at the piano, 1979. Photograph by Isaac Sutton. Johnson Publishing Company Archive. Courtesy J. Paul Getty Trust and Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. 3. Offering a prayer on the steps of a Brooklyn church, Rock n Roll singer Richard who at the time vowed to give up show business for evangelism, takes time out during New York show, 1957. Photograph by G. Marshall Wilson. Johnson Publishing Company Archive. Courtesy J. Paul Getty Trust and Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. (continued in comments)

💃 Fit check. The vibes are high this summer at Off the 405, our free outdoor summer concert series. Come as you are to take in the sunset and tunes from around the globe. 🎫 Register for your free entry via the link in our bio.

LGBTQIA+ people have always laid a foundation of community building to advocate for equal rights. In 1978, a group of lesbian women at the Los Angeles Women’s Building organized and hosted “Dyke of Your Dreams,” a celebratory Valentine’s Day dance. This was a special night of unity and joyful celebration. We’re inspired by these archival photos of queer women increasing visibility and creating space for themselves and one another. Through this thoughtful community gathering, members of the lesbian community aimed to reclaim the word ‘dyke’ from a slur of the past to a term of empowerment. The legacy of LGBTQIA+ artists and cultural workers in Los Angeles has paved the way for future conversations on intersectionality in larger queer liberation and gender equity movements. Photo credit: Photograph from Dyke of Your Dreams event at the Los Angeles Women’s Building, February 14, 1978. Getty Research Institute, 2017.M.43 (bx.46,f.5) #pridemonth

Can you spot which of these artworks are true porcelain? Swipe to learn more. . . . . In the early 17th century, true porcelain was prized by Europeans, but only makers in East Asia (China and Japan) had access to the kaolin clay to create it. Kaolin was coveted because it provided the bright white and durability that porcelain is known for. But because porcelain was a status symbol, guilds in Europe got creative and developed innovative alternatives. Today we call these creations soft paste porcelain. Different European factories had varying soft paste porcelain recipes which used ground glass and other white and light colored clays to achieve a porcelain-like product. While not as white, and as the name suggests—much softer—soft paste porcelain was still highly sought after and the distinct recipes developed by the individual factories were guarded and kept top secret. Soft paste porcelain became fashionable on its own merits and would often utilize a colorfully-glazed background since soft paste porcelain wasn’t as white and bright as true porcelain. By the late 18th century, materials to make true porcelain made their way into the manufactories in Europe, but today we still appreciate the many works made from soft paste porcelain. Sound interesting? Put your skills to the test and swipe through this album to discover which of these objects are made of soft paste porcelain. Images: 1. Figure of a Street Vendor, about 1755–1760, Mennecy Porcelain Manufactory. Getty Museum 2. Figure (Beltrame di Milano), about 1720, Meissen Porcelain Manufactory. Getty Museum 3. A Turkey, about 1733, Meissen Porcelain Manufactory and Model by Johann Joachim Kändler. Getty Museum 4. A Tea Service (déjeuner ruban), about 1765–1770, Etienne-Henri Le Guay and Sèvres Manufactory. Getty Museum 5. Cup and Saucer (gobelet litron et soucoupe deuxième grandeur), 1781, Ground color painted by Antoine Capelle, Pierre-André Le Guay, Gilded by Etienne-Henri Le Guay. Getty Museum 6. Basket (panier, deuxième grandeur), 1757, Sèvres Manufactory. Getty Museum 7. Tray (plateau carré, deuxième grandeur), 1759, Sèvres Manufactory. Getty Museum 8. Lidded Bowl and Dish (Écuelle ronde