Tag Archives: Arts and Culture

Stay “connected to culture” on International Museum Day

Culture is the glue that connects us, even when we can’t be together. Right now people around the world are learning, exploring and finding joy in unexpected places and things, and cultural organizations everywhere are responding with new ways of staying connected to audiences digitally.

Supporting cultural organisations online

To mark this year's rather unusual International Museum Day, together with the International Council of Museums, we’re supporting cultural organizations to continue their cultural programs online with our multi-language resource “Connected to Culture.” It has been inspiring and humbling to see creative cultural organizations from around the globe reimagining the way people interact with art and culture, and adapting to the virtual world. Together, they’re helping to keep our communities connected through shared, digitized cultural moments.

Launching new things to explore for everyone 

Also today, more than 80 museums from over 25 countries are sharing new collections and stories on Google Arts & Culture, joining over 2000 partners already onboard. Discover the Beijing Contemporary Art Foundation (China), Parsons School of Design (USA), Meiji Jingu Forest - Festival of Art (Japan), Patronato Ruta de la Amistad A.C (Mexico) or the Casa Buonarroti (Italy). Together, they contribute 250 new stories and over 10,000 artworks as well as virtual Street View tours to exciting places such as the sacred grounds of the Meiji Shrine in Japan.

  • Foto of womans face painted blue.png

    Meet the photographers who are revolutionizing the world of fashion through joyful images.

  • Image by Kandinsky.png

    Zoom intothe world of Kandinsky in his painting, “Hard in Soft”

  • image of a straw hat.png

    Today we’re Mad Hatters! Explore the natural materials used to make your favorite hats.

  • Gif of an old scribble .gif

    Zoom intothe genius of Michelangelo, to discover his unique military  sketches.

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    Why the long faces? Find outthe history of these 1,000 year old figurines.

Offering tools to teachers and parents

To support teachers, parents, and curious minds throughout this period of quarantine, we’ve launched new educational content—from the Family Fun on Google Arts & Culture hub, to lesson plans, and virtual field trips with digital skills lessons.
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    Google Arts & Culture is now also featured in Teach from Home, an online website that many teachers and parents have sought ideas and inspiration from during the past weeks.

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    10 “Learn Anywhere” lesson plans, written by education experts, help to dive into a wide range of themes on Google Arts & Culture. If you’re interested in how the Bauhaus school is still influencing design today, or whether dinosaurs are still alive, check out the free to download lesson plans on TES.

  • Image of CERNS LHC.png

    28 new educational virtual field trips on Google Arts & Culture lead you to famous places like Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned, the CERN tunnel, where scientists research the beginning of our universe, or Kenya to learn about the cradle of humankind.

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    Looking to explore the world from home and boost your digital skills? With new lessons from Applied Digital Skills - Grow with Google’s free, online digital skill curriculum - students can learn practical digital skills while virtually exploring art, historic events, and iconic figures on Google Arts & Culture. These five video-based lessons help students use GSuite tools to make pixel art inspired by Frida Kahlo, create a quiz on the Palace of Versailles for family and friends, and more!

For many art lovers, culture vultures, creators and curators, the idea of spending International Museum Day at home may not be a familiar one but we hope these new additions to Google Arts & Culture will inspire you to explore and learn more about arts and culture, with the whole family while at home.

Get creative with ‘do It’

It seems that baking bread, cleaning one's cellar or brewing Kombucha have become popular hobbies while staying at home. But how about creating a work of art? “Do it” are DIY instructions shared by leading creatives you can easily do at home. Today we have created a new hub for ‘Do It’ on Arts & Culture —created in collaboration with Serpentine Galleries,Independent Curators International and Kaldor Public Art Projects. 

 It began as a project by the Artistic Director of Serpentine Galleries, curator Hans Ulrich Obristand 12 artists in Paris in 1993, and now we’re adding new “do its” including ones shared by Virgil A. Abloh, Sumayya Vally from Counterspace Studio, and Arca. 

 More “do its” will be published weekly, you can also try others from the past 27 years: make a wish with Yoko Ono,invent book titles like the Raqs Media Collective or bake a delicious gratin guided by film director Agnes Varda. 

 We hope these instructions will help you release your inner artist—share your creations via  #DoItAroundTheWorld. To find out more about “do it” visit g.co/doitaroundtheworld or discover more on Google Arts & Culture—or download our free app for iOS or Android.

 

*Header image by Precious Okoyomon

Get creative with “do it”

It seems that baking bread, cleaning one's cellar or brewing Kombucha have become popular hobbies while staying at home. But how about creating a work of art? “Do it” are DIY instructions shared by leading creatives you can easily do at home. Today we have created a new hub for ‘Do It’ on Arts & Culture —created in collaboration with Serpentine Galleries,Independent Curators International and Kaldor Public Art Projects. 

 It began as a project by the Artistic Director of Serpentine Galleries, curator Hans Ulrich Obristand 12 artists in Paris in 1993, and now we’re adding new “do its” including ones shared by Virgil A. Abloh, Sumayya Vally from Counterspace Studio, and Arca. 

 More “do its” will be published weekly, you can also try others from the past 27 years: make a wish with Yoko Ono,invent book titles like the Raqs Media Collective or bake a delicious gratin guided by film director Agnes Varda. 

 We hope these instructions will help you release your inner artist—share your creations via  #DoItAroundTheWorld. To find out more about “do it” visit g.co/doitaroundtheworld or discover more on Google Arts & Culture—or download our free app for iOS or Android. 

Header image by Precious Okoyomon

La Scala: the theater comes to you

Back in the 18th century, visitors to La Scala Theater in Milan had to scramble for good seats. Though the aristocrats owned their boxes, most people just had to stand on the ground floor the whole time, with no chairs at all. 

Starting today, nobody will have to worry about getting a good seat because La Scala of Milan, one of the most iconic theaters in the world, is raising its (digital) curtain on Google Arts & Culture. You’re invited to take the best seat in the house.

By bringing its treasures online on Google Arts & Culture, La Scala is opening for a global digital audience, after closing its doors due to the current Covid-19 restrictions. Even with its stage dark, the creativity of the artists endures. To celebrate the theater’s past and present, 92 artists from five countries have come together to create La Scala’s first opera performed in quarantine. Enjoy an aria from Verdi’s “Simon Boccanegra” that fittingly represents a story of unity and resilience.
At home with artists from La Scala performing Verdi’s "Simon Boccanegra"

By recording 92 artists (6 soloists, 26 choristes, 60 musicians), currently in lockdown in their homes in 5 different countries, the video (re)introduces viewers to an aria from Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra.

In La Scala’s online collection, you can now walk through the theater with Street View. Discover what it feels like to stand on the main stage like an opera star, enjoy a ballet performance from the Royal box or, even look around the industrial workshop, where  artisans create impressive stages, props and nearly 1,000 costumes every year, including creations by fashion designers Gianni Versace and Yves Saint Laurent. With high resolution imagery captured by our Art Camera you can even zoom into the finest details of the costumes—from ivory brocade and gold cabochons to black velvet and ruby mirror stones—worn by opera icon Maria Callas.

Go even further behind the scenes and explore over 259,000 images digitized from the theater’s archive. You can flip through the pages of a rare edition of the rare hand-painted edition of Turandot music score, the first libretto for Verdi’sNabucco or learn about the many different artists whose work has graced the La Scala stage, including artists David Hockney and Giorgio De Chirico.

  • Il Teatro alla Scala from the outside

    Il Teatro alla Scala from the outside.

  • An image of Luciano Pavarotti.jpg

    The iconic Luciano Pavarotti playing a part in the opera Aida.

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    The parterre at La Scala Theatreoffers a full view of its spectacular interior.

  • An image of opera performers .jpg

    Costumes for Salome designed by Gianni Versace, one of many famous designers creating for the Scala Theater.

  • Reproductions of a sketch for Turandot .jpg

    A reproductions of sketches for Turandot by G.Puccini Umberto Brunelleschi from 1926. 


  • View from the stage of Teatro alla Scala.jpg

    The view from the stage only known to those performing at the Teatro alla Scala.


Wherever you are, you can look behind the curtain of one of the world’s greatest theaters. And while we wait to travel again, La Scala Theatre comes to you, online on Google Arts & Culture.

To discover even more about Performing Arts browse Google Arts & Culture online, or download our free app for iOS or Android.

La Scala: the theater comes to you

Back in the 18th century, visitors to La Scala Theater in Milan had to scramble for good seats. Though the aristocrats owned their boxes, most people just had to stand on the ground floor the whole time, with no chairs at all. 

Starting today, nobody will have to worry about getting a good seat because La Scala of Milan, one of the most iconic theaters in the world, is raising its (digital) curtain on Google Arts & Culture. You’re invited to take the best seat in the house.

By bringing its treasures online on Google Arts & Culture, La Scala is opening for a global digital audience, after closing its doors due to the current Covid-19 restrictions. Even with its stage dark, the creativity of the artists endures. To celebrate the theater’s past and present, 92 artists from five countries have come together to create La Scala’s first opera performed in quarantine. Enjoy an aria from Verdi’s “Simon Boccanegra” that fittingly represents a story of unity and resilience.
At home with artists from La Scala performing Verdi’s "Simon Boccanegra"

By recording 92 artists (6 soloists, 26 choristes, 60 musicians), currently in lockdown in their homes in 5 different countries, the video (re)introduces viewers to an aria from Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra.

In La Scala’s online collection, you can now walk through the theater with Street View. Discover what it feels like to stand on the main stage like an opera star, enjoy a ballet performance from the Royal box or, even look around the industrial workshop, where  artisans create impressive stages, props and nearly 1,000 costumes every year, including creations by fashion designers Gianni Versace and Yves Saint Laurent. With high resolution imagery captured by our Art Camera you can even zoom into the finest details of the costumes—from ivory brocade and gold cabochons to black velvet and ruby mirror stones—worn by opera icon Maria Callas.

Go even further behind the scenes and explore over 259,000 images digitized from the theater’s archive. You can flip through the pages of a rare edition of the rare hand-painted edition of Turandot music score, the first libretto for Verdi’sNabucco or learn about the many different artists whose work has graced the La Scala stage, including artists David Hockney and Giorgio De Chirico.

  • Il Teatro alla Scala from the outside

    Il Teatro alla Scala from the outside.

  • An image of Luciano Pavarotti.jpg

    The iconic Luciano Pavarotti playing a part in the opera Aida.

  • Inside of a museeum.jpg

    The parterre at La Scala Theatreoffers a full view of its spectacular interior.

  • An image of opera performers .jpg

    Costumes for Salome designed by Gianni Versace, one of many famous designers creating for the Scala Theater.

  • Reproductions of a sketch for Turandot .jpg

    A reproductions of sketches for Turandot by G.Puccini Umberto Brunelleschi from 1926. 


  • View from the stage of Teatro alla Scala.jpg

    The view from the stage only known to those performing at the Teatro alla Scala.


Wherever you are, you can look behind the curtain of one of the world’s greatest theaters. And while we wait to travel again, La Scala Theatre comes to you, online on Google Arts & Culture.

To discover even more about Performing Arts browse Google Arts & Culture online, or download our free app for iOS or Android.

Go on a cultural rendezvous with “Art For Two”

If you don’t work for a cultural institution, you’ve probably never had the opportunity to wander all alone through a museum’s hallways, exhibition spaces and galleries, after hours, with no one else around. That’s a privilege usually reserved for staff—until now. 


In the first installment of Google Arts & Culture’s new video series called “Art for Two”, curators from three cultural institutions are extending a special invitation to explore their collections, minus the crowds, as they discuss their favorite rooms and pieces with digital curators Mr. Bacchus and The Art Assignment.


You'll hear from the experts themselves: The director of the Museo d’Arte Orientale shows his favorite figurine and explains why it’s unusual. Sit at an antique kitchen table with Olivier Gabet, director of the Musée des arts décoratifs, or learn more about what makes Lucio Fontana’s installation at the Galleria Civica di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea so special.
Marco Guglielminotti Trivel, director of the Museo d’Arte Orientale meets digital curator Mr. Bacchus

Marco Guglielminotti Trivel, director of the Museo d’Arte Orientale meets digital curator Mr. Bacchus

Still itching to explore more? Another new series called “Perspectives” invites you to learn about important cultural destinations through the eyes and with the commentary of an inspirational guide. For the first edition, Grammy-nominated Indian-American artist Raja Kumari takes us on a personal ride to temples in India, including the famous Mahabalipuram—a cultural jewel and popular tourist destination, referred to as “Sculpture by the Sea.”

Raja Kumari shows you the Temples of India

Raja Kumari shows you the Temples of India

Travel isn't just about checking things off your bucket list. At a slow “couch travel” pace, Quiet Journeys, accompanied by the soothing sound of classical music, will help you relax and drift off into museums and masterpieces from all around the world.


“Art for Two”, ”Perspectives” and “Quiet Journeys” are the latest additions to our growing library of video formats that connect art and culture in new and unexpected ways. Check out Art Zoom to explore masterpieces through the eyes of famous musicians, and other videos on the Google Arts & Culture YouTube channel. 


Discover more on Google Arts & Culture—or download our free app for iOS or Android.

Go on a cultural rendezvous with “Art For Two”

If you don’t work for a cultural institution, you’ve probably never had the opportunity to wander all alone through a museum’s hallways, exhibition spaces and galleries, after hours, with no one else around. That’s a privilege usually reserved for staff—until now. 


In the first installment of Google Arts & Culture’s new video series called “Art for Two”, curators from three cultural institutions are extending a special invitation to explore their collections, minus the crowds, as they discuss their favorite rooms and pieces with digital curators Mr. Bacchus and The Art Assignment.


You'll hear from the experts themselves: The director of the Museo d’Arte Orientale shows his favorite figurine and explains why it’s unusual. Sit at an antique kitchen table with Olivier Gabet, director of the Musée des arts décoratifs, or learn more about what makes Lucio Fontana’s installation at the Galleria Civica di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea so special.
Marco Guglielminotti Trivel, director of the Museo d’Arte Orientale meets digital curator Mr. Bacchus

Marco Guglielminotti Trivel, director of the Museo d’Arte Orientale meets digital curator Mr. Bacchus

Still itching to explore more? Another new series called “Perspectives” invites you to learn about important cultural destinations through the eyes and with the commentary of an inspirational guide. For the first edition, Grammy-nominated Indian-American artist Raja Kumari takes us on a personal ride to temples in India, including the famous Mahabalipuram—a cultural jewel and popular tourist destination, referred to as “Sculpture by the Sea.”

Raja Kumari shows you the Temples of India

Raja Kumari shows you the Temples of India

Travel isn't just about checking things off your bucket list. At a slow “couch travel” pace, Quiet Journeys, accompanied by the soothing sound of classical music, will help you relax and drift off into museums and masterpieces from all around the world.


“Art for Two”, ”Perspectives” and “Quiet Journeys” are the latest additions to our growing library of video formats that connect art and culture in new and unexpected ways. Check out Art Zoom to explore masterpieces through the eyes of famous musicians, and other videos on the Google Arts & Culture YouTube channel. 


Discover more on Google Arts & Culture—or download our free app for iOS or Android.

Explore new sites, relive old hikes for National Park Week

Every year, I try to visit a new National Park, or at least start planning my trip to one. That’s a little more difficult right now, but given that it’s National Park Week, I decided to try and keep with my tradition by using Google tools to satisfy my wanderlust.


Explore new places and parks

This year, I’m heading to g.co/nationalparks, a Google Arts & Culture project developed in collaboration with National Park Service that takes you on guided tours narrated by park rangers from the Kenai Fjords, Hawai'i Volcanoes, Carlsbad Caverns, Bryce Canyon and Dry Tortugas. I can also visit historical sites that I’ve never been to before, like Eleanor Roosevelt’s woodsy home in Hyde Park, New York or Thomas Edison’s camping sites (which, to me, look a little more like glamping). There are more than 100 Street View historical tours to choose from, and collections that let you discover Native American craft work or fossils from archeological digs. 

Afterward, I’ll take an in-depth tour of some of the National Parks of the United States and wander through a few of the most-loved ones recommended by our community of Local Guides in two popular Google Earth Voyager stories. I plan on rounding out the week with a new YouTube series from the Google Earth team that travels to National Parks across the country, literally “zooming” you into places like Elephant Hill in Canyonlands National Park and Kanarraville Falls in Zion National Park. There’s even a new Global National Parks quiz to test your geo-knowledge.

Video showing a tour of Utah's National Parks.

All of these things help an outdoor enthusiast who’s stuck inside (for the time being) to find unknown landscapes or get inspiration for their next trip. Perhaps for the most well-traveled out there, they’re a way to remember a favorite adventure. 

Or revisit old favorites

Before I venture into the unknown, I decided to take a trip down memory lane (or rather, memory trail), and re-experience some of my favorite hikes in National Parks with the help of Google Street View, and anyone can join me—starting with Bright Angel Trail in the Grand Canyon. Saving the uphill journey for the second half of a hike is something my legs will never forget, but it remains one of my favorite National Parks memories. And thanks to Street View, I can recreate the journey … with fewer water breaks, probably.

I can also make my way up Garfield Peak in Crater Lake National Park (which I hiked during a camping trip where I first met my husband) and make as many nostalgic pit stops along the way as I want.

And last summer, my family and I all vacationed in Acadia National Park. Now that we can’t physically see one another, I’m even more grateful we went. One of my favorite memories was hiking along the park’s easternmost edge, the Great Head Trail, with my husband and meeting my family on Sand Beach, a journey I’m happily retaking via Street View … and maybe on our weekly family video call, we’ll all “hike” it together.

Source: Google LatLong


Explore new sites, relive old hikes for National Park Week

Every year, I try to visit a new National Park, or at least start planning my trip to one. That’s a little more difficult right now, but given that it’s National Park Week, I decided to try and keep with my tradition by using Google tools to satisfy my wanderlust.


Explore new places and parks

This year, I’m exploring g.co/nationalparks, a Google Arts and Culture project developed in collaboration with National Park Service that takes you on guided tours narrated by park rangers from the Kenai Fjords, Hawai'i Volcanoes, Carlsbad Caverns, Bryce Canyon and Dry Tortugas. I can also visit historical sites that I’ve never been to before, like Eleanor Roosevelt’s woodsy home in Hyde Park, New York or Thomas Edison’s camping sites (which, to me, look a little more like glamping). There are more than 100 Street View historical tours to choose from, and collections that let you discover Native American craftwork orfossils from archeological digs. 

Afterward, I’ll take an in-depth tour of some of the National Parks of the United States and wander through a few of the most-loved ones recommended by our community of Local Guides in two popular Google Earth Voyager stories. I plan on rounding out the week with a new YouTube series from the Google Earth team that travels to National Parks across the country, literally “zooming” you into places like Elephant Hill in Canyonlands National Park and Kanarraville Falls in Zion National Park. There’s even a new Global National Parks quiz to test your geo-knowledge.

Video showing a tour of Utah's National Parks.

All of these things help an outdoor enthusiast who’s stuck inside (for the time being) to find unknown landscapes or get inspiration for their next trip. Perhaps for the most well-traveled out there, they’re a way to remember a favorite adventure. 

Or revisit old favorites

Before I venture into the unknown, I decided to take a trip down memory lane (or rather, memory trail), and re-experience some of my favorite hikes in National Parks with the help of Google Street View, and anyone can join me—starting with Bright Angel Trail in the Grand Canyon. Saving the uphill journey for the second half of a hike is something my legs will never forget, but it remains one of my favorite National Parks memories. And thanks to Street View, I can recreate the journey … with fewer water breaks, probably.

I can also make my way up Garfield Peak in Crater Lake National Park (which I hiked during a camping trip where I first met my husband) and make as many nostalgic pit stops along the way as I want.

And last summer, my family and I all vacationed in Acadia National Park. Now that we can’t physically see one another, I’m even more grateful we went. One of my favorite memories was hiking along the park’s easternmost edge, the Great Head Trail, with my husband and meeting my family on Sand Beach, a journey I’m happily retaking via Street View … and maybe on our weekly family video call, we’ll all “hike” it together.

On World Art Day, try out this activity for the whole family

We could all use a little inspiration these days. For World Art Day Google Arts & Culture is launching Family Fun with Arts & Culture, a new collection to bring your family new ways to learn about art, animals, science, space, books and music. You can discover what's inside a black hole, hang out with a Jurassic giant in virtual reality in virtual reality, or even practice some Harry Potter magic. And for our little ones, why not follow a pesky penguin through virtual tours of museum galleries?

There’s a penguin loose at the Rijksmuseum!

Thanks to the help of our partners, we’re also making new treasures and stories accessible on Google Arts & Culture. 35 cultural institutions including the Atassi Foundation (UAE), Museum of Contemporary Art in Buenos Aires (Argentina), Palazzo Monti(Italy), the Yale Center for British Art (USA) have brought online more than 100 diverse online exhibitions with over 18,000 new artworks, artifacts and stories. The Nakamura Keith Haring Collection in Japan is the only museum in the world to exclusively feature the artworks of Keith Haring. Explore over 50 of his pieces of art—including the bright yellow angel spreading its great wings—digitized in ultra high definition.

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    One of Keith Haring’s signature characters, "The Angel". Explore it in finest detail thanks to the Art Camera.

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    "Kiyoharu Art Colony" is a safe haven for artists to awaken their  artistic spirit and share their creativity with the world. Explore it on Street View. 

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    Explore the works of iconic  women artists of the Palazzo Monti.

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    Bangkok Art and Culture Centre contributes an exhibit about the prospects of Art Therapy.

  • Portrait of Friedericke Maria Beer by Klimt.png

    Go on an in-painting tour of Gustav Klimt’s colorful masterpiece, “Portrait of Friedericke Maria Beer” at Tel Aviv Museum of Art.

  • Artwork at Museo Dolores Olmedo.gif

    Museo Dolores Olmedoshares how this famous Mexican muralist copied other artistic styles before finding his own.

  • Artwork at ciputra artpreneur .png

    Ciputra Artpreneurshares a story of passion, intimacy, and heartbreak in this colorful in-painting tour.

If you’re looking for more, check out this list of ways to have fun with Arts and Culture at home, and for more armchair cultural travel, explore the wonders of Italy, France, Spain and the UK. 

Keep discovering on Google Arts & Culture, or download our free app for iOS or Android.