San Francisco’s de Young Museum has collaborated with Google Arts & Culture on Google Lens, which allows visitors to discover the stories behind paintings.
Tricia Robson, Director of Digital Strategy at The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, revealed the news on Tuesday (June 11).
The de Young museum’s American art collection includes paintings, sculpture, and decorative art from the 17th century to the present day.
Using Google Lens, visitors can search what they see by pointing their phone’s camera at a work like Edmund Charles Tarbell’s The Blue Veil.
In a window that pops up after Google recognises the artwork, guests will learn about the artist, find out what mediums were used, and receive a brief history of the piece itself.
In a new collaboration between @googlearts and the @deyoungmuseum, you can now find the hidden stories behind the museum's American art collection using Google Lens → https://t.co/ocEYxWGicJ pic.twitter.com/5aa2hkU1pB
— Google (@Google) June 11, 2019
Additionally, artists are able to share their perspective. In a new exhibition, Detour, artist Ana Prvački takes visitors on a personal tour of the museum.
Visitors can access Prvački’s short videos on mobile devices via Google Lens at sites throughout the free public spaces of the museum.
The Google Lens feature at the de Young Museum is live now, and concludes in September.
Tech trends at attractions
Elsewhere, the Mauritshuis museum and Nationale-Nederlanden have brought one of Rembrandt’s most famous paintings to life in augmented reality (AR) at the Waag (Weigh House) in Amsterdam.
As technology becomes increasingly integral in creating unique and memorable visitor experiences, Blooloop has predicted six attraction tech trends as ones to watch in 2019.
Image: Google Lens
