Art Organizations and Virtual Tours

By: Jessica Teaford 

             

            In Arts and Society we talked about whether museums should put virtual tours on websites such as the Google Arts Project.  The room was spilt about 50/50.  Some people said that the virtual tours were kind-of cheating.  It was cheating because viewers of the websites would not be able to get the full experience of the museum and seeing the art in person.  The other side was saying that putting the art online opened it up to more viewers.  People that could never afford to travel to the Paris to see the Louvre are finally able to see pieces of art that they would never be able to otherwise. 

            I was on the side of allowing people to see the things they would never be able to see otherwise.  People want information.  And allowing them to see art from around the world helps make the world a little bit smaller.  I think art organizations not just museums could benefit from these virtual tours.  At the box office I work at I spend more time on the phone trying to explain to patrons what our venue looks like because they want to make the most informed decision when making their seat selection.  Virtual tours would help patrons know where their seats will be and what their view of the stage will be.  This I think will help with people coming up to the window when they are unhappy with their seats because there was not a clear picture on the website.    

 http://www.technologyinthearts.org/2012/04/the-google-art-project-welcomes-you-to-the-white-house/