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In this tech-driven society, mobile devices play a huge part in improving art appreciation. In the nonprofit sector alone, npENGAGE ranked mobile as the most influential factor to improve operations of art organizations. Citing a PR Web study, writer Ryan King said 28% of the web traffic comes from mobile, saying it’s a great opportunity to offer ticketing options by “offering visitors and patrons the opportunity to buy tickets on their smartphone and then use their phone as their ticket for admission.”

Last year, we saw how online art went mainstream. Today, as mobile technology gets more innovative, there are more ways to improve art appreciation:

Google Open Gallery

Late last year, the Google Open Gallery was opened to the public, allowing you to host and publish your own mobile exhibit. A part of Google’s Cultural Institute, it showcases any of your vintage artwork and historical documents. Similar to Google+ previously, you’ll ask for an invite to maximize the Open Gallery. Then, all of the platform services are free to use, including the culturalspot.org domain.

You can customize your whole mobile web page and upload multimedia files such as images, videos, and the Street View imagery. Anyone accessing your exhibit on a smartphone is able to zoom content for high-resolution images. There’s a mounted advanced search feature to locate cultural content. As Forbes proclaims Google as the most visited website, with 7% mobile-only visitors, the Open Gallery is a good opportunity to spark engagement among art novices.    

Mobile applications

The prelude to museum visits involves a specific amount of time, as they need to canvass for cheaper ones or consult with their friends. Mobile applications aim to shorten these long processes. For instance, The Smithsonian Museum in Washington, DC has the Infinity of Nations app, which provides mobile tours, videos, and slideshow presentations of a specific exhibit.

Among its selection of apps, the LeafSnap is one of the most intuitive, as it uses your smartphone camera to identify plant species. After snapping a specific leaf, it uses GPS coordinates to identify the tree from a vast database. For accurate results, you need to use a quality smartphone camera, which the latest mobile phones are already equipped with. One of which is the new HTC One M8, which O2 revealed has a “clever” snapper that captures just the right amount of light. With this, you’ll be able to capture leaf elements vividly – the blade, edges, pattern, and veins.

Amazon Art

Amazon takes advantage of the mobile retail trend with the Amazon Art, considered as the ultimate online marketplace of fine art. When purchasing an artwork, patrons tend to find cheaper alternatives, with easier interface. With Amazon Art, collectors are compelled to buy from the portal with its easier mechanism and its reasonably priced resources.

This is not Amazon’s first venture into the art industry. There was a pilot scheme in 2001 wherein Amazon partnered with auctioneer Sotheby’s with a project that only lasted for 16 months. But today, it seems that the company is poised to persuade interested art novices to sign up. The portal exhibits around 40,000 pieces of fine art, a result of Amazon’s partnership with 150 art galleries across the United States, including the Paddle8 in New York and the Catherin Pearson Gallery in Seattle. VentureBeat reported that it features pieces from over 4,500 artists, such as Salvador Dali, Marc Chagall, and Damien Hirst.

Art Startups: Where art and tech meet

Today, there’s a boatload of art startups, employing mobile technology to redefine their line of work. The Globe and Mail believes it’s a high time for these types of companies, saying that “creative people are linked to economic growth.” Here are some of them:

· S[edition]

When it comes to digital art, S[edition] is making a big name. Founded by Harry Blain and Robert Norton, it can be your online resource of digital artworks coming from contemporary artists such as Yoko Ono and Jenny Holzer.

· ARTFLAKES

ARTFLAKES has its own way of sparking engagement by allowing art novices to interact with artists. It also houses around 620,000 designs, photographs, and paintings.

· ART:ICULATE

Established in March 2013, ART:I:CULATE is a platform tasked to “organize exhibitions for you and with you.” The main attraction of the sites is its social aspect wherein you can discover new artists, collect pieces, and expand your creative network.

Whether you’re an art novice or professional, the techniques used by these institutions help you develop that artistic freedom and independence.

 About the Author:

Despite being a mobile tech blogger, you can also talk to Allie Cooper about everything and anything art-related. On Sundays, one of her recreational activities is painting in her backyard. For more stories, contact Allie on Twitter and Google+.