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Cure Boredom With Virtual Museum Tours

Damn you COVID-19 pandemic! The holiday is cancelled, I’m stuck at home, the washing’s done, the house is clean, the dog refuses to engage in my intellectual conversations and I won’t go to the shops to stockpile because I’m not a selfish DICK! BOREDOM has set-in so I embarked on a quest to find some virtual museum tours to cure my boredom!

We’re all in these bizarre times together right? Now I don’t know about you, but I feel like I’m a protagonist in some shitty Stephen King end-of-the-world TV series. Actually, it feels that way because his 1994 miniseries, The Stand shares an eerie resemblance to what’s happening now.

Of course, in today’s movie I am one of the main protagonists. I’m a super-fit redhead with great arms and abs of steel! Just envision a redheaded Linda Hamilton from Terminator who will kick COVID-19’s arse! Basically, the complete opposite of my current form, spaghetti arms and squishy abs that resemble a half-empty goon bag.

But hey, it’s my movie! I can be whomever I like! However, I’m digressing.

How to Stay Sane? Go On Virtual Museum Tours

The point is, many of us are now stuck at home and going bat-shit crazy with boredom. Hence my awesome movie that’s still playing in my head. I’m currently kicking a COVID-19 zombie’s arse.

Some of you might be lucky and can work from home, while others, are now on an unplanned, unpaid holiday from work. At home. A holiday. At your home. Indefinitely. What the actual f&*K!

It’s enough to send anyone bat-shit crazy!

But there are many things you can do online to alleviate the boredom. And if you’ve had your overseas holiday cancelled, perhaps you can virtually enjoy some overseas culture online, free from the COVID-19 pandemic.

So, below are some fabulous virtual museum tours you can do to save your sanity while stuck at home.

Get Yourself Some Culture With Virtual Museum Tours

Musée d’Orsay, Paris, France

In an unprecedented turn of events, the world’s most esteemed museums and art galleries have been forced into lockdown. However, we can still get our culture on in the comfort of our lounge room! And the best part of online museum tours is, you can wear your pyjamas, eat your favourite food, and crack open a bottle of wine! I believe it’s ‘frowned upon’ if you try this in person. Apparently, museum curators don’t find any humour in drunken shenanigans or pretzel-eating tourists in their museums. Well, so I’ve been told anyway 😉

So, don your beret, grab a glass of champagne, croissant and a snail from your garden, and let’s visit France for a virtual museum tour through Paris’ Musée d’Orsay.

And interestingly, this museum was built in the former Orsay railway station. The railway station was built for the Universal Exhibition of 1900 and is now home to art collections from 1848 to 1914.

If you’re not familiar with the artworks of Vincent Van Gogh, Gustave Courbet, Edgar Degas or Édouard Manet to name just a few, then now is the time to, as the French say, obtenez-vous un peu de culture.  

online museum tours

La Galleria Nazionale, Rome, Italy

Next stop is Rome. Home of red wine, pizza and pasta. And be sure to grab ALL of these things while you take a virtual museum tour of the La Galleria Nazionale.

It boasts a collection of 20,000 international and Italian artworks. The museum is home to drawings, paintings, sculptures and installations from the last two centuries.  And you’ll spend quite some time touring this museum so make sure you grab a bottle of wine. Or maybe two. I mean, we are getting our culture on, we’re certainly not driving anywhere and it is the Italian way after all 😉

Uffizi Gallery, Firenze Italy

Still in Italy, the next online museum tour is the Uffizi Gallery. Now, this museum was built in 1560 to house the Granducal Magistratures of Tuscany. You can virtually tour this museum and see exhibits such as:

The Santa Trinita Maestà, Cimabue

The Creative Process Behind Federico Barocci’s Drawings

Piero di Cosimo,”Perseus Freeing Andromeda”

Amico revisited. Drawings by Amico Aspertini and other Bolognese artists 

Grab a beer and a hotdog as the next stop is the USA to check out more virtual museum tours

Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe, United States

Next stop is Santa Fe for the Georgia O’Keeffe museum. This museum preserves, presents, and advances the artistic legacy of Georgia O’Keeffe and Modernism through innovative public engagement, education, and research. It offers a range of online tours of watercolour paintings, Precisionism, American Modernism and Georgia O’Keeffe artworks.

MoMA The Museum of Modern Art, New York, United States

The Museum of Modern Art, affectionately known as MOMA, was founded in 1929 in Manhattan and it was the first museum dedicated to modern art. The museum boasts 150,000 sculptures, drawings, paintings, photographs, prints, architectural models and design objects. And it has approximately 22,000 films and four million film stills.

The highlights of MOMA’s collections include Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night, Claude Monet’s Water Lilies and Pablo Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon. It is also home to works by Andy Warhol.

This museum is definitely worth a tour, virtual or otherwise! So, grab a hotdog, a Bud Light, put your feet up and enjoy the tour of the MOMA.

The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, United States

And while you’re in virtual America (in our house, it’s yelled, MERICA and always with a nod of the head), check out the J. Paul Getty Museum in L.A.  Because this museum features a wonderful collection of American, European and Asian photographs, paintings, drawings, sculptures, illuminated manuscripts and decorative arts.

The Art Institute of Chicago, United States

This renowned art museum is home to one of the largest collections in MERICA *head nod*. The Art Institute collects, preserves, and displays works in every medium from all cultures and historical eras and has a collection of over 260,000 artworks.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, United States

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, commonly known as The Met, (and not the baseball team as Joey of FRIENDS would have us believe), was founded in 1870. Its online exhibits feature stunning collections from Coco Chanel, Christian Dior and Vermeer. So, this one is definitely worth a virtual look.  

The National Museum of Natural History Washington D.C , America

Remember Night at The Museum? It was the movie when all the exhibits came to life and ran amok. And that’s this museum! Why not take an online tour of the museum and see how many exhibits you recognise from the movie? With exhibits from the ice age, to Attila the Hun to woolly mammoths, this museum is a great one for the kiddies!

More virtual museum tours…

Guggenheim, New York, United States

While we’re still in MERICA *head nod*, we’d be remiss to overlook the Guggenheim. And it has quite a few online exhibits for you to virtually tour from the comfort of your underwear and your lounge room.

But a Storm Is Blowing From Paradise: Contemporary Art of the Middle East and North Africa.

Storylines: Contemporary Art at the Guggenheim.

Under the Same Sun: Art from Latin America.

No Country: Contemporary Art for South and Southeast Asia.

The Little-Known Glass Works of Josef Albers.

virtual museum tours

Rijksmuseum, Netherlands

Now it’s time to leave MERICA *head nod* (are you nodding with me?) and visit the Netherlands. The Rijksmuseum features many famous artworks from the Dutch Golden Age such as, the Milkmaid by Vermeer and Rembrandt’s Night Watch. And the Rijksmuseum has many online exhibitions so be sure to take an online tour of this museum!

Museo Frida Kahlo, Mexico

And now we visit the Mexican Museo Frida Kahlo, the museum that pays homage to the people and cultures of Mexico. There is an online exhibit ‘Appearances Can Be Deceiving’ and it boasts a collection of photographs and oil paintings.  If you’ve never been to beautiful Mexico, get into the spirit of this beautiful country! So go, make yourself some nachos and grab the tequila. Now, you must always shout “TEQUILA!” and include a kick of the heels and click of the fingers. Because it adds authenticity to your virtual experience and the whole purpose is to escape the confines of our 4-walled home prison. Also, the more tequila you consume, the closer you feel to Mexico. I dunno why it works…it just does 😉

Next Stop, Brazil! More Virtual Museum Tours

MASP – Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand, Sao Paulo, Brazil

Hello Brazil! Now this museum was founded in 1947 by Brazilian businessman Assis Chateaubriand, and is a private, non-profit museum and home to over 8,000 artworks. You can virtaually tour this museum and check out the many online exhibits below:

Art in Fashion: MASP’s Rhodia Collection

Art from Brazil until 1900

Picture Gallery in Transformation

Art from Italy: from Rafael to Titian

Art from France: from Delacroix to Cézanne

The Louvre, Paris, France

Who hasn’t heard of The Louvre? It’s where Tom Hanks cracked the mystery of The Davinci Code. And one of my favourite movies, if not just for the beautiful scenery and for the virtual tour inside The Louvre, albeit while getting chased by a murderous albino monk. But honestly, I got a far better look at the famous Mona Lisa in the movie, than when I visited The Louvre in 2016. Stupid tourists and their iPhones!

boredom

However, take a virtual museum tour from the comfort of your lounge. And you can sit back with a glass of bubbles and not fear getting pushed aside and rammed into an ancient statue from an over-enthusiastic tourist. It was not fun :/

Virtual museum tours of The Louvre.

Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam

And what about the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam! It houses the largest collection of artworks by Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) in the world. The permanent collection includes over 200 paintings by Vincent van Gogh, over 750 letters and 500 drawings. All Van Gogh fans need to check this one out.

The British Museum, London, England

And finally, we’re in England baby! This historic museum in London is home to 2 millions years of art, culture and history.  So be sure to grab a pork pie and a guiness and take a virtual tour of the British Museum.

Did you enjoy these virtual museum tours ?

So I hope you enjoyed the blog and visiting some of the worlds fabulous museums online! And if you need help with your copy writing then drop me a line here.

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