Google’s Art Transfer turns your photos into a work of art

If you’re a fan of fine art masters like Van Gogh and Rembrandt but lack their talented eye and hand, there’s still hope. Google will transform your regular photos into an art masterpiece, as if painted by those big names from the past. The company added a new feature to its Arts & Culture app that lets you transfer famous art styles to your photos.

The feature is developed in collaboration with art institutions like the UK's National Gallery and Japan’s MOA Museum of Art, and uses the power of Google AI to do its magic. Apparently, it’s all done on the user’s device and doesn’t involve any cloud-based trickery.

“Art Transfer is powered by an algorithmic model created by Google AI. Once you snap your photo and select a style, Art Transfer doesn’t just blend the two things or simply overlay your image. Instead, it kicks off a unique algorithmic recreation of your photo inspired by the specific art style you have chosen. And all of it happens right on your device without the help of the cloud or your image being processed online.”, wrote Google on its official blog.



Adding a fine art panage to images isn’t a new thing. Some of you might remember the terrific Prisma app, which basically did the same thing and earned Editor’s Choice label in the Play Store. Variety is always a good thing, and you can check our list of similar apps and choose one to your liking.

You can download and try the Arts & Culture app from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store for free. To start feeling like a famous painter, tap on the Camera icon on the bottom of the app and choose Art Transfer. You can take a photo or upload one, and then select an art style from the dozens available. There’s an option to apply the style to a specific part of the image, and if you get it wrong, you can always start over. You won’t need a canvas and expensive oil paints, just a phone and some motivation.