Roman Mosaics Across the Empire, Getty Villa, March 30–September 12, 2016

Mosaics once decorated luxurious domestic and public buildings across the broad expanse of the Roman Empire. Scenes from mythology, daily life, nature, and arena spectacles enlivened interior spaces and reflected the cultural ambitions of wealthy patrons. Roman Mosaics across the Empire, on view March 30–September 12, 2016, at the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Villa, presents the artistry of mosaics as well as the contexts of their discovery throughout the Mediterranean region—from the Empire’s center in Italy to the provinces in North Africa, southern Gaul, and Syria. Drawn primarily from the Getty Museum's collection, the exhibition offers visitors a rare opportunity to experience these splendid objects in all their visual and cultural magnificence.

The exhibition will examine the works in their original contexts, including the locations for which they were made—whether private villas, public baths, or churches—and the decorative and narrative functions of their subject matter. It will also highlight a project at the archaeological site of Bulla Regia in present-day Tunisia, North Africa, led by the Getty Conservation Institute (GCI), in collaboration with the Institut National du Patrimoine of Tunisia and World Monuments Fund, which seeks to conserve and maintain mosaics at the site.

Roman Mosaics across the Empire is curated by Alexis Belis, assistant curator of antiquities at the J. Paul Getty Museum.

The Getty has publish an online catalogue on the occasion of this exhibition called Roman Mosaics in the J. Paul Getty Museum. It can be downloaded free of charge.