Here are 7 virtual museum tours you can take from your couch
You don’t need a plane ticket to see any of these fabulous museums…
The coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic has closed our art centres, museums, entertainment destinations and even cancelled events, but that doesn’t mean we have to sit around and do nothing.
If you’re itching for that culture fix, you can now visit some of the best museums in the world from the comforts of your own home using virtual technology.
Here are some world-famous museums you can visit without having to get off your couch.
1. Louvre Museum in Paris
Detail of the ceiling in the Louvre Museum, Paris, France.
The Louvre Museum in France is the world’s largest art museum and a historic monument in Paris, France. Art lover or not, this is one museum that should be on your list of places to visit. For the time being, however, it’s closed to the public, but if you head to the museum’s website, you’ll be able to take a virtual tour of it. Not only will you be able to visit the museum’s many exhibition rooms and galleries, you will also be able to view the beautiful facade of the Louvre, too. Heard of the stunning Galerie d’Apollon (Apollo Gallery)? The ceiling is famous for its high vaulted ceilings with painted decorations and you can see it up-close in the virtual reality tour. Like wow!
2. Guggenheim in New York
This virtual tour of New York icon focuses on the Guggenheim’s famous spiral staircase, where you can see works of art from the Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, Modern and contemporary eras. While you may finish your virtual tour of the staircase fairly fast, you can head to the main homepage and scroll though other artworks at the museum.
artsandculture.google.com/partner/solomon-r-guggenheim-museum
3. Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam
Almond Blossom by Vincent van Gogh
While you won’t be able to catch Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night here (don’t worry, you will at the MoMA — the Museum of Modern Art, up next), you will be able to spot plenty of his other masterpieces. In fact, this museum houses his largest collection including 200 paintings, 500 drawings, and over 750 personal letters. Paintings include Branches with Almond Blossom, Sunflowers, The Bedroom, Wheat Field with Crows (believed to be the last painting he ever did) and much more.
artsandculture.google.com/partner/van-gogh-museum
4. Museum of Modern Art
The Persistence of Memory – Salvador Dalí
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), in New York, houses one of the world’s finest collections of modern and contemporary art. It is dedicated to the conversation between the past and the present, the established and the experimental. Apart from Van Gogh’s The Starry Night, you will also be able to look at artworks by Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí and many more modernist artists.
artsandculture.google.com/partner/moma-the-museum-of-modern-art
5. The Smithsonian
If you love the Big Bang Theory and wholeheartedly agree with what Ross from TV sitcom Friends has to say, then you’ll love The Smithsonian. The museum seeks to understand the natural world and our place in it. This museum holds about 155.5 million objects, which include artworks, cultural artifacts and scientific specimens spread across three floors — but, not all of these are visible on the 360-degree tour. Items you can get a closer look at range from a Neanderthal reconstruction, to earth rocks that are about 3.96 billion years old to a 195-carat sapphire, and much more.
artsandculture.google.com/partner/smithsonian-national-museum-of-natural-history
6. The Getty Museum
The Abduction of Europa – Rembrandt
You might also like
You might want to set some time aside for this one, as the virtual exploration of the Getty Museum’s rooms seems endless, with one room leading to the next. Nonetheless, don’t rush through it — there are more than 15,000 items to check out. The collection spans European paintings, drawings, sculpture, illuminated manuscripts, decorative arts, and European, Asian, and American photographs. When checking out the information provided on some of these masterpieces, don’t forget to scroll all the way down, as some come with additional videos that dwell deeper on on the artwork.
artsandculture.google.com/partner/the-j-paul-getty-museum
7. British Museum in London
Crocodile dance mask by Torres Strait Islander
The British Museum in London is dedicated to human history, art and culture. The collection here has been sourced through the era of the British Empire and is dedicated to human history, art and culture. Its permanent collection spans eight million works, making it the largest and most comprehensive collection in existence. On the website, you can navigate between The Americas, Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania from 2000AD to 2,000,000BC. You can even narrow down your experience and select from art and design, living and dying, power and identity, religion and belief and lastly, trade and conflict. Navigation can be tricky, so be patient with it as there’s lots to explore and learn.
Images: Getty/social
