Your iPad Becomes A Docent With The National Gallery, London
National Gallery, London ($0.99) by Macsoftex is an app that provides the opportunity to view some of the best artistic work in the National Gallery, London. Marvel in the detail of Canaletto or the simplicity of Monet, as you scroll through an array of paintings. I used this on the new iPad 2, and the screen resolution nicely complimented the details of these works of fine art.
This is one of the simplest apps I have ever used. Once you open it up, you can choose which century art you would like to view and scroll through each painting. You can view over 1100 paintings ranging between the 15th and 20th centuries. The images are crisp, and you can zoom in closer to look at the detail in a particular part of the painting. You have to hold your fingers on the screen in order to zoom, but at least you can view something close-up, just like walking through a gallery. Each image has the name of the artist and the name of the painting listed on the bottom. You can mark your favorites, download, send by email, publish on your Facebook page, and more. Once the picture is downloaded, it is stored in your photos. There is a slideshow feature as well, so you can set your iPad or iPhone upright and have the paintings continually change.
The app crashed a few times on me while navigating between the different centuries, but hopefully this will be fixed in a future update. I would love to see more added to this app. It would be wonderful to view the history and biography of a particular artist and painting. It would also be nice to read some tutorials on the period of art and what techniques were used.
All in all though, this is an app that is a soothing mental break, especially during a long day. If you enjoy art, National Gallery, London is a great download for your collection.
