Google's New Art Filter Turns You Into a Live Artwork

Tech giant Google has just introduced a brand new feature on its Arts & Culture app that's available on iOS and Android: a 3D-modelled augmented reality filter based on famous paintings and historical museum items. 

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The new feature, called the Art Filter, lets the users turn themselves into famous paintings and try on iconic artifacts from museums around the world. While trying on the filters, the app also provides information about the painting or the artifact of your choice. 

The team behind the project made use of image processing with the help of machine learning while creating the Art Filter. The filters are each carefully designed to make them as similar to the original artwork or historical item as possible. In fact, they're very life-like to make the user experience top-notch.

Entertain and educate

The purpose of the Art Filter is to both entertain and educate. With each filter comes important information about the history of the painting or the item. This means you'll be able to get to know about the art while losing yourself in Van Gogh's impressionist lines or trying on a beautiful Egyptian necklace. 

Sounds lovely, right? The sad news though, there are only 5 filters for the time being. The filters include Johannes Vermeer's "Girl with a Pearl Earring", Vincent van Gogh's "Self-Portrait", Frida Kahlo's "Self portrait with Monkey", a Japanese samurai helmet from the 19th century, and a collar necklace from Ancient Egypt. 

As fun as these kinds of filters that use artificial intelligence are, there have been issues regarding data privacy in the past with various tech companies, most notable being Apple's iCloud breaches. Google states that the company follows its AI principles and aims to reassure users regarding their personal data. 

You can download the app on iOS or Android and get started! 

Google posted a message along with the announcement of the Art Filter today saying, "We are looking forward to seeing what creations you make with Art Filter and what you will learn about these artifacts. Share your favorite photos and videos using the hashtag #ArtFilter."

So go ahead and spread art and culture on your Instagram feeds!