A project has begun bringing together the Sydney Opera House and the Google Cultural Institute to open up the famous building to a world audience online.
Writer and designer Sam Doust were involved in compiling the archive of material which you can now tour. One highlight is Ella Fitzgerald’s signature from when she visited the Opera House in the 1970s.
You can also get a sense of what it was like to be involved in the construction of the iconic building, which was opened in 1973 by the Queen. There is a photo of a lottery ticket used to raise funds for the building, and material from architect Jorn Utzon, who dropped out of the project after several years of bitter disagreements with others involved.
The opportunity that the world will now have is to see the Opera House, not from the traditional vision or the imagery that is etched in their minds, but they will get a unique opportunity to explore inside commented New South Wales minister for the Arts Troy Grant.
One downside to the archive, according to Doust, is that cost and copyright restrictions have prevented the displaying of photos and videos from performances prior to 2005.
Google’s Cultural Institute has partnered with many museums and other institutions around the world to make their collections available to a broader audience.
Here you can get an introduction to the Google tour.