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The Google Arts & Culture app will help you become a culture fundi

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Google Arts & Culture
Free at Google Play and iTunes
Three stars

Accessible and jam-packed with global cultural, art, fashion and design histories and trends, the reason I recommend you download the Google Arts & Culture app and keep it handy on your phone has nothing to do with its primary uses.

Developed as a companion to major public art collections, galleries and museums, the app gives you the lowdown on what art can be accessed near you – and the background on what you’re looking for once you’re there.

That’s great, but not if you live in Africa. Johannesburg, which offers a decent enough display of public work, has only five collections covered: the Johannesburg Art Gallery, the Rock Art Research Institute, the Biko and Mandela foundations and the Maboneng precinct (huh?). The magnificent collection at Constitution Hill, the Apartheid Museum, Wits Art Museum, Museum Africa, none of these gets a look-in yet.

The other big hype around the app lately is its crafty cultural doppelganger feature. You take a selfie and it will find your lookalike among the paintings on display. Great fun, but only really if you live in America. It’s not available in Joburg yet.

Why I recommend the app is as an easy-to-read, visually rich educational resource. A useful tool that will help you become an art fundi. The articles have compelling angles and fresh news and explore art mysteries, movements and critical analysis of individual works, buildings and the like.

We’ve become those people who, whenever we’re in a queue or waiting, we play with our phones. I have resolved to use my phone for more learning and less play this year and have already spent hours on this app. I consider myself well versed in the field, but I’ve been learning new things daily. Try it.

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