Attention, art aficionados! You may be stuck at home right now, but that doesn’t mean you can’t experience masterpieces from all over the world. From Amsterdam to Auckland and Nottingham to New Delhi, we’ve rounded up the best virtual exhibitions and gallery tours out there.
Once you’ve worked your way through all of these, be sure to check out our roundup of virtual museum tours, which includes other art-focused institutions including The Louvre and The Met.
Uffizi Gallery (Florence)
Italy’s most visited art museum is yours to explore via these two virtual tours. Discover Italian Rennaisance masterpieces including Leonardo da Vinci’s Annunciation, Tondo Doni by Michaelangelo, and Andrea Botticelli’s Birth of Venus on a tour of the gallery’s second floor via the Uffizi website and Google Arts and Culture.
Gemäldegalerie (Berlin)
One of the world’s most important collections of 13th-18th century European paintings is just a few clicks away thanks to this virtual tour from Google Arts and Culture. Look out for the octagonal Rembrandt Room and Raphael’s quintet of Madonnas.
Museo del Prado (Madrid)
Thanks to the Prado’s interactive timeline, you can journey through centuries of art history. While you’re there, check out this 360 view of the museum’s Rubens exhibition, plus this time-capsule of a VR experience which recreates the museum’s Sala de Reina Isabel as it was in the 1870s.
The State Tretyakov Gallery (Moscow)
This treasure trove of Russian art boasts works by Wassily Kandinsky, Valentin Serov, and Ilya Repin — to name but a few. Explore the Tretyakov Gallery for yourself on this virtual tour.
National Gallery Singapore
The largest public collection of modern Southeast Asian art is housed in Singapore’s National Gallery. Must-see works include Liu Kang’s Artist and Model, F. X. Harsono’s Paling Top, and Chua Mia Tee’s National Language Class. See how many you can spot on this virtual tour.
The Art Institute of Chicago
Channel your inner Ferris Bueller with a virtual trip across the pond to the Art Institute of Chicago. This tour from Google Arts and Culture lets you get up close to Georges Seurat’s pointillist masterpiece A Sunday on La Grande Jatte, a self-portrait by Vincent van Gogh, and Grant Wood’s American Gothic.
Musée d’Orsay (Paris)
Tour the largest collection of impressionist and post-impressionist art in the world with a virtual visit to the Musee d’Orsay. The Gare d’Orsay, the exquisite Beaux-Arts former railway station that houses the museum, is a work of art in and of itself — get a load of the station’s glistening, barrel-vaulted ceilings and its ornate golden clock.
Belvedere (Vienna)
Roam this lavish Baroque palace and discover a wealth of Austrian art, including Gustav Klimt’s shimmering gold leaf masterpiece, The Kiss, which you can learn more about on Google Arts and Culture. You can also enjoy a live guided tour of the Belvedere Museum every day at 3pm via its Facebook page.
São Paulo Museum of Art
Brazil’s first modern museum is a striking space. Great works of art hang on crystal easels as if suspended in mid-air — adding a touch of magic to its rough-edged, Brutalist rooms. See works by Dutch Masters, leading Rennaisance figures, and other celebrated European artists alongside a substantial collection from Brazil and the Americas. Explore it virtually here.
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek (Copenhagen)
Discover the largest collection of ancient Mediterranean art in northern Europe on a virtual visit to Copenhagen’s Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek. Roam amongst statues of Egyptian deities and busts of Roman rulers, and see the art museum’s lush winter garden, a soothing oasis featuring tall palm trees, a fish pond, and a fountain.
Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery (Washington)
This one’s as much for the US history buffs as it is for art lovers. The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery features plenty of familiar faces — from Gilbert Stuart’s Athenaeum Portrait of George Washington to Amy Sherald’s 2013 rendering of Michelle Obama. Explore it here.
National Gallery of Modern Art (New Delhi)
Admire works by India’s greatest modern artists on a virtual tour of the country’s premier art gallery. Highlights include paintings by Amrita Sher-Gil, Raja Ravi Verma, and Jamini Roy.
Van Gogh Museum (Amsterdam)
In little more than a decade, Vincent van Gogh created thousands of artworks — more than enough to fill up a whole honking great museum. See hundreds of the legendary artist’s paintings, plus his drawings and personal correspondence on a virtual tour of the Van Gogh Museum.
Nottingham Contemporary
Now for something a little closer to home. Nottingham Contemporary may not be as renowned as the Prado or the Uffizi, but its virtual offerings blow the aforementioned out of the water. V21 Artspace has created a range of immersive 3D tours of the art gallery’s exhibitions — including Lisa Rhodes: Dissident Lines and Still Undead: Popular Culture in Britain Beyond the Bauhaus — that’ll make you feel as though you’re really there. V21 Artspace has worked its magic on cultural institutions up and down the country, and you can check them all out here.
Museo Reina Sofía (Madrid)
The jewel in Museo Reina Sofia’s crown is undoubtedly Pablo Picasso’s Guernica, and you can study this anti-war masterpiece in-depth on the art museum’s dedicated microsite. You can also explore works from the likes of Joan Miro, Juan Gris, and Salvador Dali via Google Arts and Culture. Don’t forget to check out the museum’s fascinating collection of Civil War propaganda posters while you’re here.
Mauritshuis (The Haag)
The Mauritshuis is home to some of the world’s finest Dutch Golden Age masterpieces, including Johanne Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring, The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Nicolaes Tulp by Rembrandt, and Carel Fabritius’ The Goldfinch, which inspired Donna Tartt’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name. Discover them all on a virtual tour of this opulent Dutch heritage site.
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki
Dive into the visual history of New Zealand on a virtual tour of the island nation’s largest art gallery. Explore outstanding works by Māori and Pacific Island artists alongside paintings by European Old Masters.
Johannesburg Art Gallery
The largest public collection of modern and contemporary art in sub-Saharan Africa has made several of its exhibits available to explore online. See Bleek, Richardt Strydom’s photographic interrogation of white masculinity, plus exhibits from The Evidence of Things Not Seen, an exploration of the photography’s role as a “visual weapon and means to document the struggle against apartheid”.
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