Hermitage virtual tours in Italian draw 11,000+ viewers on first day

The State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, closed since March 18 due to COVID-19, launched a series of live-streamed virtual tours in Italian through its Venetian branch Ermitage Italia. The first broadcast on March 26 from the Winter Palace's State Rooms attracted over 11,000 viewers. Guided by Olga Macho, head of public education at the Hermitage, the tour was translated into Italian. Director General Mikhail Piotrovsky expressed solidarity with Italy in a video message, stating, "Art helps to live and survive." The museum holds over 300 Italian artworks by masters including Raphael, Leonardo, Giorgione, Titian, Michelangelo, Canaletto, Caravaggio, and Canova. Upcoming sessions include walks through Leonardo and Raphael's eras, Venetian vedute with Canaletto and Guardi, restoration of Raphael school frescoes, a behind-the-scenes look at Tintoretto's John the Baptist, the Tsars' wardrobe, Etruscan and Roman antiquities, 19th–20th century art at the General Staff Building, and hard stone restoration. The next event on April 2 at 6 PM will focus on Venetian view painters, led by Irina Artemieva, curator of Venetian painting and co-director of Ermitage Italia. The schedule is available on the Hermitage's YouTube channel and Facebook pages.