Museums around the world offer gallery tours and top artworks online. Take advantage of the time at home to walk through the halls of wonderful places like the Louvre Museum, in Paris; the Metropolitan Museum in New York; and MASP, in São Paulo. It’s a great way to not completely isolate yourself from the world and still stay connected with culture and art. It’s a breath of fresh air on such difficult days and you’ll still come out of this expert in great artists. Oh! And all without queuing and for free. Let’s walk through the museums, even virtually!
1 – Louvre, Paris – France
The Louvre Museum in Paris is part of the wish list of many travelers and it is sensational! Despite the long queues that are common and the tireless rush to get to the Mona Lisa, the Louvre should and deserves to be visited calmly. Then take advantage of the virtual tour to enjoy details of the works of art (some of them in high resolution and richness of detail) and corridors without the dozens of people taking selfies next to you, in addition to great videos with tours and explanations about the main works of art.
The virtual visit to the Louvre was completely revamped during the pandemic and it is now much easier to walk through the corridors and see the museum’s works of art up close on the official website. Available in French, English, Spanish and Chinese, the site is scrollable on tablets and computers, but is primarily designed for use on smartphones. The Louvre is certainly among the best museums in the world. Don’t miss the visit!
2 – Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York – United States
The Metropolitan is one of the largest and most complete museums in New York City. A darling among tourists and an almost guaranteed visit for those visiting the city for the first time, the MET is worth hours of walking around in person and also online. There are videos available on the museum’s website that show the Metropolitan in 360º, complete with a great soundtrack. In the videos, you can control the direction and thus look at the museum from the angle you want.
In addition to the 360º videos, the MET website also offers several videos, texts and photos about the history of the works available at the museum, behind the scenes of the place and details of the exhibitions. Through the map of the museum available on the website, it is possible to learn more about each room at the MET. Another way to see the Metropolitan de NY is through the Google Arts & Culture page, which offers a virtual tour of several sections of the museum in 360º, as if it were a Google Street View of art. The virtual museum is available in English.
3 – Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago – United States
Eternalized in the scenes of the movie “Enjoying Life Adoidado”, the Art Institute of Chicago is one of the most impressive museums in Chicago and has one of the best collections in the world, especially from the impressionist period. There are more than 300,000 pieces guarded by the two bronze lions that enchant visitors at the entrance to the building. The museum, the main space dedicated to art in Chicago, is so large that, in size, it is second only to the Metropolitan in New York.
One of the most disputed paintings in the museum is the work American Gothic, painted by the American Grant Wood in 1930, which can be seen up close in a virtual tour, as well as other important works in the museum. The audios available in the museum’s audioguide are also accessible online. Great to learn more about each work.
4 – Pinacoteca, São Paulo – Brazil
One of the most beautiful museums in the city of São Paulo, the Pinacoteca is a delight for the eyes. The old Lyceum of Arts and Crafts building, designed at the end of the 19th century, would be enough to deserve the virtual tour. However, the Pinacoteca goes much further and presents a beautiful collection, which started with just 26 paintings and today has more than 9,000 works of art.
The highlight is the collection of national artists, especially from the 19th and 20th centuries, among them: Benedito Calixto, Pedro Alexandrino, Victor Meirelles, Eliseu Visconti, José Ferraz de Almeida Junior and Anita Malfatti. You can check details of several works online and also visit the museum’s corridors through Google Arts & Culture, with emphasis on the work Mestizo, by Candida Portinari.
5 – Vatican Museum, Rome – Italy
The Vatican Museum is capable of making even the most athletic tourists tired, starting with the long lines and corridors that lead to works of art gathered over centuries of history. Virtually it will be much more peaceful to visit the sumptuous halls that form the museum and still calmly see every detail of the always disputed Sistine Chapel, which has part of the work carried out by Michelangelo. Among the works of art in the Vatican Museum, works by Raphael, Leonardo Da Vinci, Caravaggio and others can be seen. Several works, chapels and buildings can be visited in videos and 360º photos.
6 – Anne Frank House Museum, Amsterdam
The Anne Frank House Museum, located in Amsterdam, tells the story of the girl of Jewish origin who took refuge with her family in the house of neighbors who protected them during the Nazi invasion of the Netherlands, in 1942. It is virtually possible to watch several videos about the life and diary of Anne Frank, visiting the room where she and her family were hidden for more than two years during the Second World War and also the house where they lived before the great war. Those who have virtual reality glasses available will be able to use them in a special session.
The virtual museum is available in English, Spanish, Dutch and German. There is a special gallery in Portuguese and 19 other languages. The virtual reality session is also available in Portuguese. The museum can also be seen on Google Arts & Culture.
7 – Musée d’Orsay, Paris – France
The Louvre is wonderful, but the d’Orsay is a favorite of many tourists who pass through Paris. With a more compact size (it operates inside a magnificent railway station built in 1900) and a smaller collection, the d’Orsay is usually easier to browse. The space presents art in France, Europe and the United States from the period from 1848 to 1914. It is virtually possible to learn more about the collection and art history in several educational videos and also walk through the corridors and see in detail the main works through the Google Arts & Culture.
8 – National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico City – Mexico
Mexico City’s biggest star, the National Museum of Anthropology is one of the city’s most popular attractions. Fame is not for nothing. The museum has a really spectacular and unique collection. It is certainly a mandatory and priority visit for anyone in the city, but you can also get to know the collection virtually. The biggest highlights of the museum are in the room of the mexica peoples (as the mexicans refer to the Aztecs).
It is in this large wing of the exhibition that the Pedra do Sol, more popularly known as the Aztec Calendar, is located. Another highlight are the grandiose sculptures representing the gods of Teotihuacán. On the museum’s website you can see details of the collection and on Google Arts & Culture you can walk through the wonderful corridors.
9 – Newseum, Washington DC – United States
A celebration of the fight for press freedom, the Newseum in Washington tells the story of the most important events in America and the world through the news. In an interactive and absolutely exciting way, the museum seeks to detail coverage and facts relevant to humanity.
In each session you will be surprised by the power of the news. In times of Coronavirus and fake news, it is always good to remember that information is one of the best weapons. On the Newseum website you can check every day the front page of more than 800 newspapers worldwide; participate in classes, discussions and seminars
10 – National Air and Space Museum, Washington – DC
Missing a good trip? The Washington Air and Space Museum offers patrons an incredible journey! With the largest collection of aircraft and spacecraft in the world, the museum mesmerizes visitors with huge halls decorated from floor to ceiling. There are so many original and important copies that it is even difficult to list them. They go from the Wright brothers’ plane to the Lunar Module LM-2.
The exhibited materials are not restricted to aircraft. There are examples of rockets, probes, cameras that recorded images from space, satellites, meteorites and even a piece of lunar rock that can be touched by visitors. On the site it is also possible to have a bit of fun with games on interactive screens, videos, photos and lots of information.
