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While we are all grounded there is an opportunity for armchair travel We can revisit favourite haunts or plan new places to see. As Spring is in the air our first virtual tour is to Europe. In the north, the sun will be spreading hope and we can enjoy an outdoor coffee, well wrapped up against any chill breezes. In the south we can definitely sit outside and watch the world go by. Dreaming of Sorrento and a Bellini already or maybe Glyfyda or the spring flowers in the Greek Islands.
BERLIN
Fasten your seat belts and have your gloves handy because we are off to Berlin. Museum Island has enough to keep you entertained for the whole day. https://www.visitberlin.de/en/museum-island-in-berlin#/
The Pergamon Museum https://artsandculture.google.com/story/igKSKBBnEBSGKg blew me away the first time I saw it and if you like Ancient and Classical History, sculpture and architecture, this is a must.
The Altes Museum https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/altes-museum-staatliche-museen-zu-berlin is also on the island.: Karl Friedrich Schinkel’s Altes Museum, completed in 1830, is one of the most important buildings of the Neoclassical era. The monumental arrangement of eighteen Ionic fluted columns, the expansive atrium and sweeping staircase that invites visitors to ascend to the top, the rotunda adorned with Antique sculptures on all sides as a place to collect one’s thoughts and an explicit reference to Rome’s Pantheon: such signs of architectural refinement had previously only ever been seen in buildings designed for royalty and the nobility.
Having feasted on an amazing collection of art its definitely time for a coffee, maybe on the banks of the Spree while we watch the boats go by.
Keep your gloves and hat on because the next stop is Amsterdam.
AMSTERDAM
There is much to see here and perhaps the Van Gogh Museum will be our first port of call.
It has 2 virtual exhibits and a lot more to see besides. https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/van-gogh-museum?hl=en
Perhaps after a sit down and refreshment you would like to wander on to
The Rijksmuseum https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/rijksmuseum which has a number of pictures you can look at in detail with pop up information on certain aspects of the painting. In addition, there are also themed collections varying from periods in art such as Baroque, to forms such as engravings. Then there are over 164.000 images that you can click on and get a detailed description. This could take weeks! If you don’t end up wandering the collections eternally you might like to pop out to the Hague to visit the Maurithaus https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/mauritshuis?hl=en where there is an amazing collection of Dutch painting.
PARIS
After suitable refreshment we head for Paris, without the queues.
The Louvre is offering virtual tours https://www.louvre.fr/en/visites-en-ligne :
- The Advent of the Artist
- Egyptian Antiquities
- The Remains of the Louvre’s Moat—a walk around the original perimeter moat
- Galerie d’Apollon—recently restores and displaying Apollo slaying the serpent by Delacroix.
After this it is off to the Musee d’Orsay https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/musee-dorsay-paris which is offering 5 themed collections and 278 other pictures to look at.
You could also visit Versailles https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/palace-of-versailles where there are 16 stories to be viewed, or you might prefer to visit a collection of Underground and Street Art at https://artsandculture.google.com/exhibit/underground-paris-street-art-1/wRHud_pA
BELGIUM
From the Netherlands we travel to Belgium, so with some Belgian chocolates to hand let’s explore The Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/royal-museums-of-fine-arts-of-belgiumwhich preserves the most important visual arts collection of Belgium. Through paintings, sculptures or drawings, all 20,000 works and six museums illustrate our History, from the 15th to the 21st century. The OldMasters, Magritte, Fin-de-Siècle, Modern (selection) Museums as well as the Wiertz and Meunier home-studios constitute a unique cultural heritage that also explores the future, functioning as a platform for societal reflection on the construction of our contemporary identities. If you like Bruegel you are in luck as there are 12 exhibits in the stories section plus 6 themed exhibits on other periods in art..
ROMANIA
Now for something completely different. We are off to Romania to The Palace of Culture – palace of museums, acknowledged as an emblem of the city of Laşi. Built in the neo-Gothic style it represents one of the last expressions of Romanticism in the official architecture. Although it was not built on top of ancient foundations, as it was assumed at the beginning of the 20th century, the Palace partially stands on the ruins of the medieval princely courts, mentioned in documents of 1434.
The Brukenthal Palace and the collections put together by Baron Samuel von Brukenthal represent the nucleus of the present Brukenthal National Museum. https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/national-museum-complex-moldova-iasi There are 5 online exhibits, 6 themed collections and a number of paintings to examine. 21 themed collections are also available, covering art from many different areas of Europe in a variety of genres and includes a collection of Romanian Art. A little off the beaten track perhaps but worth a little diversion.
ROME
You probably thought I meant to type Rome above . Don’t worry we’ve made it. To take a tour of a whole host of Museums and galleries go tohttps://www.romeandart.eu/en/art-museums-virtual-rome.html where you have enough to fill a week, feasting on Classical Antiquity and Italian art. Most include virtual tours. ( includes the Vatican Galleries) For a complete panorama of Italian Art visit the National Gallery https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/La-Galleria-Nazionale?hl=en
Highlights of the Raphael Exhibition at https://news.artnet.com/exhibitions/see-raphael-blockbuste-shuttered-italy-lockdown-1798848
ATHENS
Time to move further south now so you can ditch the gloves and winter clothes as we travel to Athens. While we are still fresh we make our way to the Acropolis Museum https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/acropolis-museum . Those who like Classical Sculpture will appreciate the themed exhibits here. There are not too many so after you have taken in the view it will be time to move onto the National Gallery https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/national-gallery-athens The online exhibition is 19th Century , painting of the Independent Greek State There are also 6 themed collections and 124 other exhibits. One final museum, the Museum of Cycladic Art https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/museum-of-cycladic-art which has a small collection of vases, sculpture clay and craft items but is well worth a look.
I’m exhausted now by this whistle stop tour and I’m sure some passengers are commenting on the choice of places. I know that there are huge numbers left out in the cold but this is just a sample of what is in offer for the virtual tourist. Please feel free to send in links of places you have enjoyed. I’m now off to Mystrashttp://yougoculture.com/virtual-tour/mystras/ a place I hope to revisit some day again, if and when things return to normal.
The astute will notice that I have made great use of artsandculture@google.com It is an excellent site and all sorts of organisations have jumped on board. What I have attempted to do is put together a tour with the hyperlinks to the specific sites. The next edition will see another tour and with more time to do research we will maybe venture off the beaten track. Happy travelling.
Members Reccomendations
British School in Rome: Raphael Exhibition Recommended by Jayne
https://agcult.it/a/16525/2020-03-26/scuderie-del-quirinale-la-visita-virtuale-della-mostra-raffaello-e-da-oggi-online?fbclid=IwAR1DWvvpRf5JSThwhDcEiY3VGW8KWxG3–DfQ9Hdsh-k_CzzRH75FlAI2cQ
The Arts Society are launching online lectures for the over 70’s suggested by pat W
https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Feducation%2F2020%2Fapr%2F07%2Farts-society-to-launch-online-lectures-for-over-70s%3FCMP%3DShare_iOSApp_Other&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cc4ff763c5efb42b5828a08d7dacda0e8%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637218449021560313&sdata=sUt7Ooo4FJlnH3fzuqounm8ofTfqwHfAkjOnE9NlcG4%3D&reserved=0
