8 Museums You Can Visit Online While You’re in Quarantine
The COVID-19 pandemic has many of us isolated in our homes and avoiding public places. In fact, visiting many of the world’s most famous attractions isn’t even an option right now. But even as they continue to close their doors, a host of art galleries and museums are opening up virtual tours online, allowing guests to get a glimpse of the art free of charge.
If you’re bored and holed up with your family, you’re sure to find some entertainment in these virtual museum tours:
National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art — Seoul, South Korea
Take in the displays of this museum without leaving the comfort of your home. Click on the slides at the bottom to focus on a particular piece, and use the magnifying glass to zoom in. You can also the read the artist information provided below each example.
J Paul Getty Museum — Los Angeles
In addition to over 15,000 images of works dating from the eighth through the 21st centuries, the Getty online museum offers detailed and up-close historical storytelling through words and pictures in galleries like Heaven, Hell, and Dying Well and Eat, Drink, and Be Merry. Visitors can also click on the Museum View for a virtual tour of each piece within the physical museum.
The Uffizi Gallery — Florence
Take a virtual trip to Italy and visit works such as Madonna of Harpies by Andrea Del Sarto (1517) and Annunciation by Leonardo da Vinci (1472).
The National Gallery — London
While you might not be able to touch the neoclassical architecture here, the virtual tour is still a gem that allows access to some of the museum’s over 2,300 publicly owned works of art. You can learn more about the museum and explore both the Central Hall and seven galleries of Renaissance masterpieces from northern Italy, the Netherlands, and Germany via the institution’s 360-view virtual tour, which is enhanced even more if you own a VR headset.
Guggenheim — Bilbao, Spain and New York City
Few names are interwoven with art like Guggenheim. While you might not be able to visit in person, both the locations in Spain and New York City are still open for virtual tours. See the architecture and tour exhibits like Mrs. Lenin and the Nightingale by Georg Baselitz and Ovitz’s Library by Jonas Wood.
Art Basel — Hong Kong
If your passion is contemporary art, you’ll be happy to know that the Hong Kong portion of Art Basel is now available online for your viewing pleasure. Explore work from 235 galleries in online viewing rooms. Critique famous works such as Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Room and Philippe Parreno’s My Room Is Another Fishbowl, and then hang out to discover lesser known work by Middle Eastern, Asian, and Southeast Asian talents.
Rijksmuseum — Amsterdam
Art and Amsterdam go together like peanut butter and jelly. If you can’t observe the city’s rich art and artifact history in person, the next best thing is a virtual exhibit highlighting works from Vermeer, Rembrandt, and other Dutch masters. And don’t forget to take in the museum’s 19th-century architecture, which comes fresh off a recent 10-year renovation to add modern lighting and a glass-roofed atrium.
Musée d’Orsay — Paris
Of course the French must be included in any list of historical art, and the Musée d’Orsay offers you a chance to get your daily dose of Monet and explore the largest collection of impressionist and post-Impressionist works in the world. Again, take in the architecture on this virtual tour, which is a work of art in itself.
