The Tate has launched a new app that will allow visitors to lead their own journey around Tate galleries using their smartphone.

The new app was developed by Fabrique and Northern Lights and supported by the Tate’s digital partner Bloomberg Philanthropies. It is the latest in a series of new developments created to increase access to the arts and expand visitor engagement.
The app is designed to provide users with a bespoke, behind-the-scenes, personalised experience, and allows users to select from three options - art, activity and eat and shop - with each option providing information about experiences on offer at the gallery that day.

Using iBeacon technology to identify when the visitors are at the gallery and their real time location, the app can direct users towards specific art works and exhibitions or the nearest place to get food and drink.
Guests will also have access to in-depth information about the collections on display including wider art movements, information about individual works and artists, history and an audio library with over 350 clips taken from the Tate’s digital archives.

Kerstin Mogull, managing director of Tate, said: “The Tate app is designed to be simple, useful and fun. Our museums are becoming increasingly active spaces with even more diverse programmes, so it’s important for us to provide an easy way for everyone to get the most out of the Tate.
The app, which was launched last week, has been rolled out across Tate Britain, Tate Modern, Tate Liverpool and will launch at Tate St Ives when it re-opens later this year.