Strolling through a museum and getting to see beautiful objects, paintings, and furniture can be highly rewarding. It is also time-consuming and sometimes expensive. Also, there are exhibitions all over the country, so something you really want to see might involve an airplane. Fortunately, online exhibits are becoming more and more common, offering an armchair experience that might not be quite as satisfying, but it give you access to far more than you could ever take in in person. (You could go to three separate museums in an afternoon!)
Major museums and large institutions (like the Smithsonian) are great places to start. Occasionally, there is a fee, but these offerings are, more often than not, free. Have a seat, grab a drink, and sink into these educational and enlightening experiences.
Enjoy Art at Home with These 3 Virtual Museum Exhibitions
Entertaining at Home
The Frick Pittsburgh
These object from the collection of the Frick Pittsburgh are incredible examples of household items, many of them serving pieces for coffee, tea, champagne, punch—plus games, flatware, serving trays, and plates. In this virtual museum exhibition, there are also some furniture and clothing pieces as well as a few oddities, including something called an “annunciator,” which is like an old-style intercom, a smaller-scale version of the bell system on the kitchen wall at Downton Abbey. When someone in the household pushed a button in a particular room, a bell would ring and an arrow indicating where it had come from would turn.
Alexander Girard: A Designer’s Universe
Museum of International Folk Art
An interactive,virtual walkthrough of an exhibition celebrating the work of Alexander Girard, an architect, designer (interiors, furniture, textiles) born in NYC in 1907. One of his claims to fame was working for Herman Miller, designing fabrics for Charles and Ray Eames, among others. (He was made head of the textiles division of the company in 1952.) He brought colorful textiles, graphics, lounge furniture, and interiors into the airline industry. For a deep dive into Girard, check out the books about him by designer Todd Oldham and (my friend) Kiera Coffee, one published in 2011, the other dropping in October.
A Dark, A Light, A Bright: The Designs of Dorothy Liebes
Smithsonian Institute
A well-organized ode to designer, color authority, and weaver Dorothy Liebes (1897-1972) who, despite a major impact on the interiors, transportation, and fashion industries during her lifetime, is not that widely known. (Something this exhibit will begin to rectify!) Her work brought not only lively color but also texture. She collaborated with many famous architects including Frank Lloyd Wright, who used her fabrics for upholstery, curtains, carpets, etc. (Her incredible room dividers can be seen in the Delegates’ Dining Room of the United Nations.) Her work was so influential that the term “Liebes Look” is still used today.
Story by Stephen Treffinger
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