Tech Talk: An App for Understanding Christian Art

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In the last few years, as some of my favorite online writers have alluded to different aspects of pieces of art, I've felt a curiosity grow in myself.

But, until I read about the art/y/fact.Xn app over at Ironic Catholic, I didn't really do anything about it. Here, though, is a tool for those of us who don't really understand what we're looking at, don't really have the gumption to do much more about it than wonder, and don't necessarily know how to learn more without spending hours.

This is a tool to help users interpret and meditate with Christian art. It doesn't provide the art: it helps you understand what you're seeing and to see what you might not have known without a little bit of help.

You find your own Christian art in a museum, book, church, magazine, or website, and then you boot up this app. There are interpretive tools included, along with over 100 articles about common themes found in Christian art.

Once you pick your category, you learn basic info, what to look for, and read questions that guide you in different interpretations (general, personal, and historical).

Click further, and you can choose from subcategories.

This is an app that not only teaches you to appreciate and interpret the art you're enjoying, but it equips you to build on your skills and continue to learn and grow from your meditations.

You can dig deeper at any time.

There are also six audio meditations included.

It's $1.99 and available on iTunes and Android. I think I'm going to use it to help me in my prayer time during Lent, especially at those times when I most crave silence...sometimes not using words is a way to quiet myself.

Do you meditate with art? What tools do you use?