Google Arts & Culture partners with eight leading institutions to launch 50 new stories and over 2,500 digital artifacts, adding to the celebration of Africa’s diverse history, art, and living traditions on Google Arts & Culture.
Every piece of art and historic artifact carries a meaning that connects where we come from to where we are going. Google Arts & Culture is proud to launch 50 new stories and over 2,500 new artifacts from eight leading institutions across Africa, continuing to share Africa’s diverse history to a global audience.
Our journey begins in Nigeria with the Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Art, which used Google’s Art Camera — one of its first deployments on the continent — to bring over 150 stunning Nigerian masterworks into ultra-high resolution and present them in bespoke immersive virtual exhibition spaces:
- Zoom into Masterpieces: Google’s Art Camera captures artworks in spectacular gigapixel detail, allowing you to get up close with legendary Nigerian art. Discover Aina Onabolu’s Yoruba nobility realist portraiture, and Diseye Tantua’s “Afro Pop Art” buses like ‘No Hurry in Life’ or ‘No Time is Late’, symbolizing the journey of life and patience. Explore ‘The Great Hunter’ by Bruce Onobrakpeya, or immerse yourself in the African Traditional Market and Urban Landscapes through artistic expressions.
- Step Inside Virtual Galleries: Experience the museum beyond its physical walls. Using immersive 3D technology, our ‘Pocket Galleries’ help you step into beautifully curated, virtual spaces from anywhere in the world. Explore the Arewa gallery to learn about the rich cultural tapestry of Northern Nigeria, or wander through Philosophical Objects, a virtual exhibition designed to challenge how we explore reality, identity, and the core of human existence through art.
- Explore culture across the web: African institutions are actively using our embed technology to seamlessly feature their digital archives on their own sites, including the African Career Networks, the The African International Documentary Festival Foundation, Pop Central, West Africa Heritage Consultants or the Photography Legacy Project.
The Ijele Masquerade in Igbo culture and one of Africa’s most celebrated masking traditions.
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Meanwhile, Archivi.ng is democratizing history by turning forgotten vintage headlines into a searchable digital archive, while Goge Africa uses cultural advocacy to bring royal traditions and festivals to global screens. This tapestry is further enriched by South Africa’s Photography Legacy Project, which balances profound historical moments with modern township life, and the Western Cape Museums, which explore knowledge of indigenous foods. Bridging this past with tomorrow, the African Leadership Academy’s Rooted Identities sees young artists using new technology to show how ancestral roots can be a source of future innovation.
These new exhibits join thousands of stories curated by partners across Africa, including projects such as Woolaroo, the heritage of Sierra Leone with Sierra Leone’s National Museum and Magic Mali, all available through the Google Arts & Culture app for Android or iOS.
