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The National Gallery has just become one of those few places where you won’t be allowed to use your selfie stick.
A similar move was made by Tottenham Hotspur, who banned selfie sticks from White Hart Lane in January after a complaint from a fan, and now, visitors at the London-based gallery will not be able to use it because they fall under the category of tripods, which are already prohibited.
A spokeswoman for the National Gallery said: “Photography is allowed for personal, non-commercial purposes in the National Gallery – however there are a few exceptions in order to protect paintings, copyright of loans, individual privacy and the overall visitor experience. Therefore the use of flash and tripods is not permitted.
“Our gallery assistants and visitor-facing staff are fully-briefed and instructed to ensure we are striking the correct balance between visitor experience and the security and safety of works on display.
“Therefore they will use their discretion on a case-by-case basis in preventing photography which puts the safety of the collection at risk or obstructs other visitors.”
Selfie sticks have become a must-have gadget for all mobile phone photographers.
Boris Johnson, Beyonce and Barack Obama – who used one during a video promotion at the White House – are among those who have been seen with the device.
It’s not just the National Museum either. Other major museums and art galleries like New York’s MOMA and Met museums and Washington DC’s National Gallery and The Smithsonian of art have already banned the selfie stick, and Palace of Versailles, The Pompidou Centre and The Louvre in France are already considering a similar course of action.
Other major museums in London, including the British Museum and the National Portrait Gallery, are now believed to be planning ban the extendable poles.
The ban seems to have drawn disapproval from traditionalists but selfie sticks have proved immensely popular, with Amazon reporting that sales rose by 301% in the three months September-November.
For fear of harm to its artworks, London's National Gallery bans selfie sticks. Guess who won't be going there? ;-)
— razia desae (@raziiia) March 11, 2015
The National Gallery has banned selfie sticks. I think that's a bit selfish.
— Jeremy Nicholas (@Jeremy_Nicholas) March 11, 2015
But there are others who have welcomed the ban, saying it was getting in the way of having a reasonably calm experience and looking at great pictures.
Thank god the selfie stick is being banned. #ThereISaGod
— Jesal Parshotam (@therealjesal) March 11, 2015
Kudos to the @NationalGallery! Calm down with your selfie-sticks, people.
— Sabine (@heyerette) March 11, 2015
And then there’s this.
Slight irony that the selfie stick has been banned by @NationalGallery, in part a temple to artists' fascination with themselves
— Richard Dixon (@Linguagroover) March 11, 2015
