What’s next for art: a boom in drawing, experts fight back – and a reborn party scene? In the first of our series examining the future of culture post-Covid, our chief art critic looks at the prospects for galleries and artists 8 March 2021 • 5:00am Up close: Visitors at the National Gallery in London Credit: NurPhoto Another three months? Really? The Government’s announcement that museums cannot open before May 17 – long after commercial galleries and even gyms have resumed operations – is crushingly disappointing. Last summer proved that they can function safely. And, for many, connecting with art is a form of “essential” daily exercise: a workout for the synapses, rather than the sinews, of which they have been deprived for too long.