The National Gallery's Most Popular Online Paintings?

February 6 2021

Picture: The National Gallery

Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:

The Times has reported on news that the National Gallery in London has been experiencing an upsurge in online searches for artworks on its website.

As their story explains:

Lawrence Chiles, the National Gallery’s head of digital services, said that visitor numbers for its virtual galleries had increased by 473 per cent. “It has opened up the acceptance of viewing culture in this way. There may have been a reluctance before but people are missing their artworks,” he said.

Chiles said that all museums were considering how to make money from digital content, including via behind-the-scenes films and special access to curators online. “Everyone is really on the cusp of using the technology out there to be able to do things that will engage people in different ways,” he said.

And what are the most popular paintings, I hear you ask? Well, you can probably guess. Hans Holbein's Ambassadors and Jan van Eyck's The Arnolfini Marriage (pictured) came out on top, with Van Gogh's Sunflowers and Turner's The Fighting Temeraire following closely behind.

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On a related note, I'm yet to be convinced that monetizing digital content is a particularly good and sustainable idea, even if it might yield a small income. The museums and cultural organisations that provide the best digital content are all free and accessible on platforms like YouTube.

If successful 'YouTubers' can teach us anything, it's that is likely that online content will eventually replace television documentaries and the like. The world of art history is waiting for a pioneer in this field, I think.

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