On May 20, 1997, MUVA Virtual Museum of Arts EL PAIS was launched on the Net. The aim of MUVA is to show works of art that are locked away from view and in private places that people usually don't have access to. In Uruguay, museums have very limited collections, contemporary art is underrepresented, there is almost no budget for acquisitions, and many works remain in the artists' studios or are only seen in temporary exhibitions. Through the virtual museum, many works of art are discovered and enjoyed by a national and international audience. Because of advances in virtual reality and development of the Internet, Uruguay can now have a modern art museum.

In 1996, Alicia Haber, the museum founder and director, began studying and developing the project. Haber is an art historian, curator, and critic in the local and international scene, and wanted to explore a new medium to give Uruguayan art more visibility. MUVA is a virtual showcase of works from private collectors, artists' studios, and museum deposts that bring together the most renowned works of Uruguayan art. The museum is particularly pledged to Urugyana modern and contemporary art, and emphasizes its commitment to Uruguayan contemporary visual languages that receive scant attention in local museums, and are less known on the international scene. MUVA covers the art of the masters, highlights of Uruguayan art and at the same time, the art of mid-career and cutting edge artists.

One of MUVA's main goals is to make the Uruguayan cultural heritage available for everybody, including the needs of the Uruguayan Diaspora, and to broaden the understanding of this rich culture through the visual world and art history. MUVA also provided the first opportunity for Uruguayan architects to build a state of the art "virtual" building for a museum. The website is completely bilingual, has established more than 300 links to other wesites, and is visited by navigators from 25 countries each day and 60 countries each month.

MUVA has received more than 60 international awards and distinctions that can be found on-line in the awards section. The museum is made possible because of the patronage of the newspaper El Pais, the most important newspaper in Uruguay that has shown a strong interest in digital experiences and Internet projects, as well as in supporting the arts.