After several museums and institutions have been closed due to the coronavirus pandemic around the world, physical access to those museums and galleries have been banned and they closed theirs doors tot he public until further notice.

However, reaching to the world's leading museums and galleries is still possible via a virtual show from your home. In response to these efforts, Google Arts and Culture has partnered with more than 500 global art museums and galleries to provide a public access to the museums and their exhibitions.

Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. Image courtesy of Van Gogh Museum

In Google Arts and Culture's comprehensive list, users can visit the most prominent museums around the world, including the Louvre Museum in Paris, the MoMA, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Guggenheim Museum in New York and more.

In presentations, Google uses latest art camera systems to provide ultra high-resolution. Specifically-designed Street View tools create seamless, 360⁰ virtual tours for the partnered-museums, with floor plans and information about the location.

MoMA. Image by Iwan Baan © DS+R

Visitors can also jump from gallery's interiors into a high-resolution artwork image with additional details. By using storytelling tools, it brings the artworks and artifacts to life and create amazing stories. 

The tools include a high-res zoom viewer, expertly narrated videos, viewing notes and maps. The partners are able to curate online exhibitions to preserve their story. 

The Great Courta at the British Museum in London, UK. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Google Arts and Culture's list also includes many Italian museums and galleries which have been shut down due to the pandemic until the end of April, these museums and galleries include: the 16th-century Halls of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, the historic Biblioteca Ambrosiana, the Sforzesco Castle, the Museo del Novecento in Milan.

Guggenheim Museum in New York. Image courtesy of Dave King/DK IMAGES/SHUTTERSTOCK

If you already planned to go to see the Eiffel Tower in Paris, now you can get a 360⁰ from the Eiffel Tower towards the city. The tour also features 4 online exhibitions about the history of the tower.  

Google Arts and Culture was funded in 2011 by the Google Cultural Institute, it is a non-profit initiative that partners with cultural organizations to bring the world's cultural heritage online.

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