The Rubin is transforming. Read important updates from our Executive Director.
close-button

Art can be a call to action, create inspiration, ignite curiosity and wonderment, and ultimately, leave us intellectually pining for more.

The Rubin Museum is proud to announce a brand-new app that is now available for download in the Apple App Store and Google Play. Visitors can use the app to experience the beauty of the Museum’s art and to explore the ideas of the Himalayas from both within the museum walls and remotely with the app’s stunning visuals and sonic experience.


Go Beyond Traditional Wall Labels with Guided Audio Tours

During the art viewing process, a decoding happens as we identify how a piece of work speaks to us, but also, we begin to ask questions about its essence: “What does this make me feel? What does it mean? Where was it made? Where have I seen this before?” The list of questions and experiences are endless, but interpretation on the exhibition walls and labels can begin to satisfy these curiosities and empower visitors through knowledge.

For those who want to go deeper, audio tours offer another avenue to satiate intrigue. These audio tour narratives are carefully crafted to offer deeper insight and engagement with a work of art, and they’re now available with greater ease to visitors, through the Rubin’s new app. Our audio experiences range from curator insights and conversations between experts to poetry and music composed in response to the artworks. Often, the work becomes demystified through oration, helping the viewer traverse the iconographic terrain of a traditional Tibetan painting or sculpture.



Discover our Art—On Location or from the Comfort of Your Home

Mobile technology has become our social companion; whether it’s allowing us to communicate across the world in the blink of an eye, entertaining us during our daily commute, or acting as a mediator to fact-check a heated discussion.

Not unlike a smartphone, museums also allow us to access ideas, histories, and transport ourselves to other worlds. Now, we’re bringing the Rubin directly to your smartphone, allowing new audiences to access the collection virtually while simultaneously enhancing the in-gallery experience through unique way-finding opportunities, the chance to curate favorite artworks, and share your experiences.


Download the app before you arrive or even in the museum over our new free WiFi. Don’t have your own device? Borrow one of ours to experience the museum in a new way.

View the Rubin Museum app in the Apple App Store.

View the Rubin Museum app in Google Play.

zoom