Art isn’t just for galleries anymore. Now anyone with a computer, a modem and Internet access can see great works of art.
Next time you want to see monumental, intriguing or simply beautiful works of art, forgo the admission fees and look up these sites.
The Louvre
Once a medieval fortress, the Louvre hosts seven departments of rich historical collections: Oriental Antiquities; Egyptian Antiquities; Greek, Etruscan and Roman Antiquities; and Modern, which is sectioned into paintings, sculptures, objets d’art, and prints and drawings.
In each department, you can choose from small pictures of various works and then click on the one you’d like to see full-screen. Don’t miss “Winged Victory” or the “Venus de Milo.”
Also at the Louvre site, you can learn about admission charges (for when you plan your next trip to Paris), visitor and group information, and exhibitions. If you know French, you can read the Louvre magazine.
The Louvre is located at www.louvre.fr.
The Virtual Sistine Chapel
For years, Michelangelo’s paintings on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel have fascinated many people across the globe. If you’ve never made it to the Vatican Museum to see the real thing, take a look at www.rm.astro.it/amendola/sistina.html. It sure beats standing in line.
This site takes you through the history of the chapel and allows you close-up views of the ceiling panel by panel. Take a look at “The Creation” or a view of the whole ceiling.
My favorite panel is the “Delphian Sybil,” or the “Cumaean Sybil,” as it is called at this site.
The Smithsonian Institution
Located at www.si.edu, the Smithsonian site offers these sections: Museums and Organizations, Events and Activities, Resources and Tours, and Membership and Shops.
In the Museums section, you can read about the history of this Washington, D.C., institution or go to different museums, research centers, offices or affiliates’ pages.
Get a good view of our current and past presidents in the Hall of Presidents, located in the National Portrait Gallery.
Visit the Anacostia Museum, which helps “to increase public awareness of the Black experience” through its exhibitions, programs and research.
In the National Air and Space Museum page, you can read about and look at just about everything, including the 1903 Wright Flyer and the Bell X-1, the first airplane to travel faster than the speed of sound.
The Metropolitan Museum
of Art
Choose the floor you’d like to explore at this site, located at www.metmuseum.org.
In the Collections section, pick the floor of the museum on which you’d like to browse and view it by section. The floor choices are arranged like blueprints, so you can see what area you’d be in if you were actually there.
You can’t see the entire holdings of this New York museum at this site, but it does give you a sampling of some of the works you’d see in a certain section.
In the Membership section, you can become a member of the Metropolitan Museum of Art via the Internet.
For kids, the Education section offers educational experiences with images of works of art.
See what exhibits are on the agenda by viewing the calendar, or look over the Frequently Asked Questions.
One way to see some of the museum’s works is to browse the online gift shop. In it, you can look at and purchase everything from prints to jewelry.
What’s next? If you have any ideas of sites that would be of interest to the SDSU community, send e-mail to croshaw @rohan.sdsu.edu.
