Aberdeen Art Gallery launches a new digital guide to enrich onsite and offsite visits

Today, Aberdeen Art Gallery launched a new, digital guide on Bloomberg Connects, the free arts and cultural app created by Bloomberg Philanthropies. The Bloomberg Connects app, available free to download from Google Play or the App Store, makes Aberdeen Art Gallery accessible for both onsite or offsite visits through rich and varied content including images, audio recordings and video sharing highlights from the outstanding collections on display at the award-winning Art Gallery, Scotland’s Building of the Year.

The guide includes a brief history of the building, which was established in 1885 by visionary citizens, and today is home to one of the finest collections in the UK. The app helps tell the stories of each of the collection galleries, from what Aberdeen Art Gallery collects and why, to where artists find their inspiration. Gallery staff, local school children and artists, makers and writers share their own highlights and responses to the incredible variety of artworks on display.

Aberdeen Art Gallery celebrates the inspiring power of art and music with the beautiful Cowdray Hall concert venue at the heart of the building. Users of the Bloomberg Connects app can listen to +music playlists, a series of carefully curated playlists inspired by the collections.

The app features the voices of pupils from local primary schools Bramble Brae, Quarryhill and Manor Hill in a short series of audio recordings called Art Chat. Pupils share their thoughts about a selection of contemporary and historic artworks including Sketch for ‘The Marriage by of the Princess Royal’ by John Phillip, 1858 and Brief Encounter by Calum Colvin, 1990.

User of the free app can also enjoy content created by local artists, commissioned by the Art Gallery to celebrate its success as a winner of Art Fund Museum of the Year 2020. Jo Gilbert is an Aberdeen-based spoken word artist and writer who uses the Doric language in her work. Users of the app can listen to Jo performing her poem Oor bit, oor airt which highlights the importance of the Art Gallery remaining free to enter and accessible to everyone. 

The Lord Provost of Aberdeen, Councillor David Cameron, said: “I am thrilled that Aberdeen Art Gallery is joining more than 70 cultural institutions around the globe on Bloomberg Connects. The redevelopment of the Art Gallery made it more accessible, more welcoming and more sustainable, and the new digital guide will further enhance the experience for visitors both onsite and offsite. I hope visitors will listen again and again to the layers of voices, stories, music and poetry featured on the app and use it to discover more about the locally-loved and internationally-celebrated collection cared for by Aberdeen Art Gallery on behalf of the people of Aberdeen.”

About Bloomberg Connects
Bloomberg Connects offers free digital guides to cultural organisations around the world.  The app platform is part of Bloomberg Philanthropies’ longstanding commitment to supporting digital innovation in the arts.  Bloomberg Connects makes it easy to access and engage with arts and culture from mobile devices when visiting in person, or anytime from anywhere. With dynamic content exclusive to each partner organisation, the app provides a range of features including video, audio, and text; expert commentary; and way-finding maps.  Follow Bloomberg Connects on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for updates on new guide launches, exhibit highlights, and more.