WINNIPEG -- The Winnipeg Arts Council is rolling out a new app that helps bring the city’s art right to your phone.

Over the last several months, the Winnipeg Arts Council has been working on making Winnipeg’s art world more accessible and fun. Tamara Rae Biebrich, senior public art project manager for the Winnipeg Arts Council, said there are usually guided walking and bike tours through the summer, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, things had to change.

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('Metis Land Use' by Tiffany Shaw-Collinge at Markham Station. Photo by Anna Mawdsley)

“We thought this is really the right time to create a mobile app so that people can have a self-guided experience, so that they have a safer social distance way to explore the city and to kind of make sense of the strange times we are living in,” says Biebrich.

The Winnipeg Public Art Works app features art and murals all over the city. Biebrich says along with maps, there are also interactive elements, including trivia questions, fun facts about each piece, and even clips from the artists talking about their work.

Each art piece that is included in the project has been commissioned by the City of Winnipeg’s Public Art program.

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("Bokeh" by Takashi Iwasaki and Nadi Design in Kildonan Park. Photo by D Works Media)

“We have been working with artists and city administration and community members for the last 15 years, creating art work throughout our city," Biebrich said. "So, we included all of those pieces that are owned by the City of Winnipeg and are part of the city’s collection."

You can find the app by searching for Winnipeg Public Art Works in the App Store or Google Play.

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(Monument by Michel de Broin. Photo by Michel de Broin)