Italy's Uffizi Museum has become a TikTok sensation by turning its art into memes

Advertisement
Italy's Uffizi Museum has become a TikTok sensation by turning its art into memes
Uffizi Galleries depicted "Medusa vs. Coronavirus" in a TikTok.Uffizi Galleries/TikTok
  • The Uffizi Gallery, a famous museum in Florence, Italy, is delighting users on TikTok with mash-ups of art and memes.
  • One TikTok shows a painting of Medusa turning a depiction of the novel coronavirus to stone.
  • Others use animation to make figures in famous portraits look like they're socially distanced or set to trending music tracks.
  • TikTok is making the fine art of the gallery feel accessible and relevant to the masses.
Advertisement

The Uffizi Gallery, a museum of Renaissance-era art in Florence, Italy, is using TikTok to bring its statues and paintings to life.

This year, 90 percent of the world's 85,000 museums temporarily closed their doors due to coronavirus-related public health regulations, according to a May report from UNESCO and the International Council of Museums. One in 8 of museums that closed may never reopen, says UNESCO.

In an effort to keep their communities, future visitors, and donors engaged, many museums have been hosting educational Facebook Live sessions or virtual tours via websites like Google Arts & Culture, which offers 3-D virtual gallery walks and other interactive activities.

However, not many museums instantly jumped to join TikTok to connect with users.

As pointed out by the New York Times' Alex Marshall, the Uffizi Gallery is one of some 11 museums around the world with official accounts on TikTok.

Advertisement

The Uffizi Gallery, in particular, was initially little-known to outsiders of the fine arts space, but its TikToks have given its collections a new fanbase.

Here, views of a 19th-century statue, "Psiche abbandonata" by Pietro Tenerani, are perfectly (and dramatically) set to Adele's "Someone Like You." This TikTok is the most-viewed creation on the museum's account, having been viewed more than 80,000 times.

@uffizigalleries

Broken heart ##someonelikeyou ##love ##forever ##loneliness ##mood ##art

♬ Someone Like You - Hello Adele Tribute

One TikTok shows Medusa seemingly turning the novel coronavirus into stone.

@uffizigalleries

##Medusa Vs ##Coronavirus ##Caravaggio ##uffizi ##art

♬ suono originale - uffizigalleries

Another TikTok used a song from Doja Cat, whose songs have been used widely by creators on the platform, and animated a portrait painted by Agnolo Bronzino of Eleonora of Toledo — a Duchess of Florence — to make it look like she was dancing and living her best life.

@uffizigalleries

Rule like a boss ##immaboss ##boss ##gloss ##queen ##mood

♬ Boss Bitch - Doja Cat

The museum leaned into the popular "Bored in the house, and I'm in the house bored" soundtrack that has become a TikTok mainstay of sorts.

Advertisement
@uffizigalleries

Quanto manca al 2021?? ##boredinthehouse ##bored ##quarantine ##boredathome ##weekend ##uffizi

♬ suono originale - uffizigalleries

Other TikToks from the Uffizi Gallery show painting subjects conversing with each other, or mimicking social distancing measures.

@uffizigalleries

Distance, please!! ##socialdistancing ##mood ##comedy ##art ##nature

♬ suono originale - uffizigalleries

Many of the TikToks include Italian dialogue and captions, but commenters of various languages seem to be enjoying the content that, simply put, is making fine art approachable, accessible, and relatable to the masses.

"@ whoever makes these tiktoks: I hope you get a raise," wrote one user on the Uffizi Gallery's TikTok page.

Ilde Forgione, an administrative assistant at the museum, is the brains behind the account.

"Sometimes you have to give people a different point of view, something that says, 'Art is not boring. Art is not something you just learn at school. It's something you can discover for yourself," Forgione told the New York Times.

Advertisement

Representatives of the Uffizi Gallery did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

{{}}