After another selfie gone wrong, Europe's museums have had enough
On Saturday, a visitor to the Uffizi Galleries in Florence, Italy, stepped backward into a painting while trying to pose like its subject, Ferdinando de' Medici, a 17th-century grand prince and patron of the arts.
For the Uffizi's director, that was the last straw, and he isn't alone in his frustration. This spring, in the Palazzo Maffei in Verona, Italy, a visitor broke a chair covered in Swarovski crystals. This, too, was the result of a snapshot gone wrong: a man apparently waited for the guards to leave before posing, in an ill-fated attempt at squatting. And this month, the staff at the Louvre Museum in Paris went on an unauthorised strike to protest, in part, overcrowding and the headaches caused by selfie-taking tourists.
'The problem of visitors who come to museums to make memes or take selfies for social media is rampant,' Simone Verde, the Uffizi's director, said in a statement.
Europe's museums are struggling to cope with the problematic side of their large-scale appeal and protect their collections from summer visitors who flock to their galleries to make social media content and cool down in rare continental air conditioning, whether or not they gain a deeper knowledge of art and culture.
The recent episodes, at the start of the high tourist season, have called attention to a long-standing problem: too many tourists toting too many phones. Museums have not been able to find a foolproof compromise, despite their best efforts.
'This problem, with tourists damaging artwork, is something that is increasingly happening,' said Marina Novelli, director of the Sustainable Travel and Tourism Advanced Research Centre at Nottingham University in England.
Previously, Novelli said, tourists might have had paintings that they wanted to see in person. Now, she said, they come with a 'selfie bucket list' of paintings or places they want to photograph — or be photographed in front of — essentially creating personalised postcards from the trip.
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Sydney Morning Herald
10 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
After another selfie gone wrong, Europe's museums have had enough
It's another summer of European selfie snafus. On Saturday, a visitor to the Uffizi Galleries in Florence, Italy, stepped backward into a painting while trying to pose like its subject, Ferdinando de' Medici, a 17th-century grand prince and patron of the arts. For the Uffizi's director, that was the last straw, and he isn't alone in his frustration. This spring, in the Palazzo Maffei in Verona, Italy, a visitor broke a chair covered in Swarovski crystals. This, too, was the result of a snapshot gone wrong: a man apparently waited for the guards to leave before posing, in an ill-fated attempt at squatting. And this month, the staff at the Louvre Museum in Paris went on an unauthorised strike to protest, in part, overcrowding and the headaches caused by selfie-taking tourists. 'The problem of visitors who come to museums to make memes or take selfies for social media is rampant,' Simone Verde, the Uffizi's director, said in a statement. Europe's museums are struggling to cope with the problematic side of their large-scale appeal and protect their collections from summer visitors who flock to their galleries to make social media content and cool down in rare continental air conditioning, whether or not they gain a deeper knowledge of art and culture. The recent episodes, at the start of the high tourist season, have called attention to a long-standing problem: too many tourists toting too many phones. Museums have not been able to find a foolproof compromise, despite their best efforts. 'This problem, with tourists damaging artwork, is something that is increasingly happening,' said Marina Novelli, director of the Sustainable Travel and Tourism Advanced Research Centre at Nottingham University in England. Previously, Novelli said, tourists might have had paintings that they wanted to see in person. Now, she said, they come with a 'selfie bucket list' of paintings or places they want to photograph — or be photographed in front of — essentially creating personalised postcards from the trip.
The Age
10 hours ago
- The Age
After another selfie gone wrong, Europe's museums have had enough
It's another summer of European selfie snafus. On Saturday, a visitor to the Uffizi Galleries in Florence, Italy, stepped backward into a painting while trying to pose like its subject, Ferdinando de' Medici, a 17th-century grand prince and patron of the arts. For the Uffizi's director, that was the last straw, and he isn't alone in his frustration. This spring, in the Palazzo Maffei in Verona, Italy, a visitor broke a chair covered in Swarovski crystals. This, too, was the result of a snapshot gone wrong: a man apparently waited for the guards to leave before posing, in an ill-fated attempt at squatting. And this month, the staff at the Louvre Museum in Paris went on an unauthorised strike to protest, in part, overcrowding and the headaches caused by selfie-taking tourists. 'The problem of visitors who come to museums to make memes or take selfies for social media is rampant,' Simone Verde, the Uffizi's director, said in a statement. Europe's museums are struggling to cope with the problematic side of their large-scale appeal and protect their collections from summer visitors who flock to their galleries to make social media content and cool down in rare continental air conditioning, whether or not they gain a deeper knowledge of art and culture. The recent episodes, at the start of the high tourist season, have called attention to a long-standing problem: too many tourists toting too many phones. Museums have not been able to find a foolproof compromise, despite their best efforts. 'This problem, with tourists damaging artwork, is something that is increasingly happening,' said Marina Novelli, director of the Sustainable Travel and Tourism Advanced Research Centre at Nottingham University in England. Previously, Novelli said, tourists might have had paintings that they wanted to see in person. Now, she said, they come with a 'selfie bucket list' of paintings or places they want to photograph — or be photographed in front of — essentially creating personalised postcards from the trip.
Sky News AU
a day ago
- Sky News AU
'I don't get it': Eternally youthful Getaway host Catriona Rowntree, 53, reveals her major problem with Paris
Catriona Rowntree has taken aim at one of Paris's most enduring quirks- its notoriously small hotel lifts. The Getaway host, who's spent nearly three decades travelling the globe for the long-running Nine Network series, voiced her frustration on Instagram while in the French capital. "Another European lift. I don't get it?" the 53-year-old mother of two said in a video shared to her Instagram stories on Tuesday. "How does anyone fit a suitcase and human in here. Does that make me crazy?" The veteran TV host isn't new to the lift dilemma, either. Just days earlier, Rowntree shared a reel titled "dumb things I've done in Paris" which included a video of her sending her suitcase up the lift on its own because there wasn't enough room for her to fit alongside it. "My suitcase barely fits in the lift," she said. "Have to send it on its own. Shameless overpacker!" She followed the post with a photo of her large red hardshell suitcase crammed inside a tiny lift with the caption: "Learn from my mistakes!" Her relatable gripe struck a chord with fans. "Been there!! Stay strong," one follower commented. Another added: "Oh oui!!!! I've done the exact same thing and somehow I don't learn!" Rowntree, who has been in France filming new Getaway segments since mid-June, has also shared other moments from her Parisian adventure, including a star sighting. "So, I'm just enjoying the Parisian view when this happens…," she captioned a clip filmed while dining at Le Sevre Raspail, as French film icon Isabelle Huppert casually walked past. "French cinematic royalty strolls by. IYKYK (If you know you know)." On Monday night, she also posted a dreamy video of a hot air balloon floating above Paris around 10:30pm, referencing a decision by French President Emmanuel Macron to keep the 2024 Olympic Cauldron-inspired balloon on display until 2028. "Prepare to be shocked, sometimes a politician does actually listen to the locals and responds accordingly!" she wrote. "When @emmanuelmacron saw how much people loved the Olympic Cauldron/ballon, he said 'non, don't pack it away!' (Or words to that effect) and it will continue the positive spirit of the games, staying until 2028, re-engineered to increase its staying power and an absolute win for tourism!" She later added: "I really shoulda made this reel longer, but I hope you get the point…it's gorgeous!" Born in Sydney, Rowntree began her media career in radio in 1991 as a newsreader and lifestyle presenter, including a stint on Triple J. She later joined the Nine Network as a researcher on the children's show Wonder World!, becoming a reporter in 1993 and host the following year. In 1996, she scored her dream job on Getaway, where she has remained a staple on the series ever since. While her career is defined by international travel, Rowntree enjoys downtime at home on a farm in rural Victoria with her husband, farmer James Pettit, and their two sons, Andrew and Charles.
