Most artists I believe, are familiar with the Google Art Project launched back in February 2011; based on Google’s Street View technology we were able to wander virtually through 17 partner museums by clicking on the gallery’s floor plan.
In their second launch Google has added another 151 galleries and museums to its Art Project, the platform features over 32,000 artworks from 46 museums. One nice feature is the ability to select either "Museum View" or "Artwork View" for each museum.
The updated interface and new search features allow the user to find artworks by period or type of artist. You can look at the collections within one museum, or the collective inventory of one artist in all participating museums. Above are the results from selecting "Artist", then Albrecht Durer, which gave me 45 works that I can scroll through or play as a slideshow.
The image quality is excellent, and the zoom tool will make you think you are actually there. The "My Galleries" tool allows you to create/save/share your own virtual gallery (look out Pinterest) from some of the most prestigious museums in the world. I promise you that hours can vaporize on this site, just keep reminding yourself of how great an educational tool and resource this is.
Explore - Question - Learn - Enjoy, Jim
