FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact • Kiley Brodeur, Marketing and Communications Associate
(513) 639-2872 kiley.brodeur@cincyart.org
Cincinnati Art Museum Partners with Google Art Project
Mapping technology brings artwork to life online
CINCINNATI – The Cincinnati Art Museum announced today it will join over 200 existing online art collections through its partnership with the Google Art Project, a collaboration between Google and 200+ acclaimed art partners from across more than 40 countries that work to preserve and promote culture online.
Google Art Project will photograph and virtually map works of art featured in the Cincinnati Art Museum. This technology will allow people around the world to explore the Art Museum’s paintings, sculptures, and other objects in never-before-seen angles and in great detail with the click of a mouse. Currently, there are 279 works from the Art Museum’s collection highlights handbook available on the Google Art site. 129 additional works from the Cincinnati Wing will also be uploaded and part of the extensive collection online.
“Since we opened the Cincinnati Wing in 2003, people throughout the Tri-State area have been able to enjoy the works of our incredible local artists,” said Aaron Betsky, director of the Cincinnati Art Museum. “Now, through the partnership with Google Art Project we will also be able to give anyone access to our city’s treasures regardless of their location.”
By placing a sampling of the Museum’s works online, the Cincinnati Art Museum aims to encourage educators, students, and art enthusiasts to come experience other great works of art that are offline. This partnership has the potential to increase local tourism and places Cincinnati on par with other global cultural centers. It also encourages educators and students to utilize this interactive tool in the classroom.
“The key goal of Art Project is to provide access to high quality art to anyone through a few clicks of the mouse,” said Rob Biederman, Google spokesman. “Google is excited to partner with the Cincinnati Art Museum and showcase the Queen City’s art in such an immersive manner to the world.”
Visitors to the Google Art Project can browse 40,000 high-resolution objects by the artist’s name, the type of art, the museum, the country, collections and the time period. Google+ and video hangouts are integrated on the site, allowing viewers to invite their friends to view and discuss their favorite works in a video chat or follow a guided tour from an expert to gain an appreciation of a particular topic or collection.
The Art Project is part of the Google Cultural Institute which is dedicated to creating technology that helps the cultural community to bring their art, archives, heritage sites and other material online. The aim is to increase the range and volume of material from the cultural world that is available for people to explore online.
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About the Cincinnati Art Museum
Hours of operation are Tuesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Art Museum is closed on Mondays. The Art Museum is FREE, EVERYDAY! The Art Museum is located at 953 Eden Park Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45202. For general information, call (513) 639-2995 or visit www.cincinnatiartmuseum.org.
The Cincinnati Art Museum is supported by the generosity of individuals and businesses that give annually to the Arts Wave. The Ohio Arts Council helps fund the Cincinnati Art Museum with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. The Cincinnati Art Museum gratefully acknowledges operating support from the City of Cincinnati, as well as our members.
