The 7 best apps for art lovers

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Whether it’s to discover new artists or galleries, or just visit a museum in a new light; a new generation of Smartphone and tablet applications are streamlining the market. Happening reviews the top seven.

ArtBinder Viewer, shop gallery artworks from your screen

 

ArtBinder joins the pioneers of the generation. Launched in 2011 at Art Basel, the iPad app allows galleries across the globe to organize their inventories. The collectors version, named ArtBinder Viewer, was created for art aficionados to view gallery collections from the comfort of their home.  Unsurprisingly, ArtBinder has attracted around 300 galleries and art dealers across the world, including David Zwirner, Gavin Brown’s Enterprise and Hauser & Wirth. In July 2014, ArtBinder raised €2.7 million in order to increase its production.


Curiator, for art lovers on the move

 

Initially an online platform, Curiator is now also an easily downloaded app for Smartphone and tablet having launched in May last year.  Moenen Erbuer and Tobias Boonstoppel created Curiator to simplify the life of collectors and art lovers alike. Once the viewer has captured an image of the wall label in a museum or gallery of an artwork that interests them, the app uses optical character recognition (OCR) in order to recognize the artist’s name and title of the artwork. The image can then be stored on the application and added to collections on Curiator directly.

 

 

Vango, find the perfect painting to compliment your curtains

 

The founders of Vango were looking for a way to buy contemporary art without being obliged to enter into an intimidating gallery. For independent artists, Vango has simplified their lives so that artworks can be viewed and acquired directly online, via the safety of the app.  For new buyers, Vango builds a list of your tastes and preferences through reviewing artists and artworks that you like, and then suggesting new artwork to you.  Works of art can be filtered by color (so that you can find that painting to match the color scheme of your living room), and by location (for those who wish to support local artists). The app even allows viewers to visualize specific artworks in your home, acting as a virtual interior designer.
 


ArtStack, sharing artwork

 

On ArtStack, nothing is for sale. It is a social network where users can share images of art from galleries, museums and online. Artists, galleries and collectors are rated by the app user. Creators of ArtStack aim to make this more than a social network and soon artists will be able to share photos of their studio to invite online communities to review their ongoing projects. Virtual exhibitions can also be organised on the platform.
 

Arart, bringing life to still life

 

Arart is a hidden gem in terms of technology, giving life to famous works of art. By simply gliding your smartphone over the artwork, the app recognizes and animates it. Created by three young Japanese artists, Kei Shiratori, Takeshi Mukai and Younghyo Bak, Arart intends to “prolong” the artworks of the great masters in offering a poetic and personal interpretation. After testing the app, it must be said that the system gets confused when submitting a piece that it does not recognize from its catalogue. But, this app is very good when it works.



 

Slash Paris, matches your perfect exhibition

 

Using location, Slash allows you to discover galleries, exhibitions and museums nearest to you along with opening times, exhibition dates, metro and velib stations at your disposition. Slash provides all the necessary information to guide you to your next cultural experience. Although the app is only available for Paris locations, it is has been so well received that users are now waiting for London and New York versions to be released.
 

Cuseum, connecting museums 

 

We stopped counting the number of fundraisers created by arty tech start-ups, but this one has got our attention. Launched only last year, Cuseum has racked up $1.2 million from generous private funds and business angels. And their promise? To enhance the museum experience with cutting edge technology. Beacons connected to mobile or tablet devices within the museum allow the visitor to access all multimedia content during the visit. It allows visitors to “like” or comment on artworks, sharing their experience with other visitors. 

Cuseum’s founder and CEO, Brendan Ciecko, confirmed with us that he is in contact with many cultural institutions but cannot divulge their names for the moment. “There are 55 000 museums in the US and we want to provide them with cutting-edge technology, a platform adapted to their needs”.  The president of the company highlights the act of accompanying the museums in the creation of their tailor-made service, adapted to their collection, audience and needs. For visitors “Cuseum is a kind of biometric passport to the museum” resumes Brendan Ciecko. “Thanks to the beacons, the experience is completely natural and seamless”, adding that several features are patented. For cultural institutions, it will improve the visitor experience and the opportunities in terms of e-commerce and data analysis will be equally intriguing.