What is ArtLens?
ArLens is the Cleveland Museum of Art's iPad app, which allows you to personalize your experience of the collection both at the museum and from home. You can use ArtLens to delve into layers of interpretative content on a variety of works in the collection. Once you're at the museum, you can use it in Gallery One—CMA's innovative gallery featuring art, technology, and interpretation—as well as throughout the msueum's permanent collection galleries.
ArtLens on Your iPad
ArtLens is available for download to your iPad 2+ for free, in the iTunes app store. Once you've downloaded the ArtLens to your iPad, launch the app—but be patient! The first time you launch ArtLens, it may take 10 or more minutes to install and upload the collection to provide a more streamlined experience. We promise, it's worth the wait! Be sure to download and launch your application before coming to the museum, so you can begin immediately when you arrive.
The application has five main features:
- Near You Now – Using the museum's indoor wayfinding technology, you can discover artworks in the collection that have interpretive content, such as film and audio, in any gallery. You can also use this feature to browse through the collection on a path you set yourself in the museum.
- Scanning – Employing innovative image recognition software, ArtLens can recognize artworks in the collection seamlessly, offering access to additional interpretive content. A special icon indicates which artworks have this feature. This content is only available on-site.
- Tours – Select from both museum-created and visitor-created tours. The mapping feature in ArtLens helps visitors locate specific artworks and navigate tours.
- Today – Get a daily snapshot of exhibitions and events occurring at the museum.
- Favorites – Save favorite works of art and share through Facebook or Twitter. You can also create personalized tours which can be shared with other visitors.
To reveal onsite content in the galleries:
- Find an artwork marked with the round ArtLens icon. In the galleries, the icon appears with the wall label. In the Artlens, the icon is light blue, and appears in the upper left corner of artwork images in Near You Now, and below the favorites button on artwork detail pages.
- Stand directly in front of the art.
- Click the scan logo. This is found both in bottom right hand corner of the screen and on the artwork detail pages for scannable artwork.
- When the camera aperture appears/opens, hold your iPad up vertically in front of the artwork you wish to scan.
- Content will appear linked to specific features of the artwork. Lower your iPad to a comfortable position, and learn about the artwork.
Please note:
- There is no sound associated with the videos in Gallery One.
- Videos associated with objects in other galleries have narration. We encourage you to bring headphones.
Don't have an iPad?
The museum has iPads available for rental at the desk located inside Gallery One, near the Collection Wall. The rental fee is $5 per iPad. We will hold your valid driver's license or student ID until return.
The iPad is not required to experience many aspects of Gallery One.