NGMA launches virtual tour of permanent collection amid lockdown

After shutting its doors for visitors amid the coronavirus outbreak, the National Gallery of Modern Art has launched a virtual tour through which art enthusiasts can enjoy its repository of artefacts.

The decision was taken on the 66th Foundation Day of the gallery on Sunday.

"The sculptures, paintings and prints in the visual tour is a step further to showcase the hidden treasures of our reserve collection, NGMA Director General Adwaita Gadanayak said.

"I present this visual tour as a tribute to our modern masters and firmly believe that this would generate greater interest among people towards the legacy of sculptures, paintings and prints as a creative medium," Gadanayak said.

NGMA is the only cultural institution which has begun the initiative of taking their collection online during the lockdown. However, some museums like the National Museum already have online exhibits..

One platform that has emerged as a favourite during the ongoing lockdown is the Google Arts and Culture site, which provides virtual tours of 79 cultural institutions related to India.

The online platform provides over 500 virtual tours for art, history and sports lover stuck indoors during the stay-at-home order.

Not just museums, many art galleries too have taken their exhibitions online. Art basel Hong Kong, Asia's biggest contemporary-art fair, was cancelled because of COVID-19, but anyone who had planned to visit the fair could enjoy it at a click of keyboard