Known for the 1066 Battle of Hastings, the small town of Hastings, on England’s southeast coast, has achieved a national first with its contemporary museum, which now offers “tele-present robot” tours of its galleries. Pioneered by the same technology that develops aids for disabled people, the remote-controlled robot offers the “physical experience of being somewhere,” Will Barrett explained in a recent BBC interview, “but from somewhere else.” The robot can take visitors to works by Quentin Blake, Anne Ryan, Cecily Brown, and others. Hastings Contemporary hopes to continue using the robot even after reopening. —J.V.

Email info@hastingscontemporary.org in order to book.