Explore Panoramic Paintings Using Google Street View Technology

Before the era of tablets and VR headsets, artists found innovative ways to create 360-degree scenes. In the late 18th and 19th centuries, panoramic paintings were a popular way to show viewers exotic locations they may have never seen otherwise. Eighteenth-century British painter Robert Barker created the first panoramas, or “cycloramas,” by painting huge landscapes onto the insides of cylindrical structures. Now there’s an app that uses Google Street View technology to take this concept to the next level.

Created by Mexican artist Raul Moyado, “Mobile Cyclorama” features six gorgeous landscapes that users can explore by moving their devices. His dreamy, impressionistic paintings depict mountains, a sleepy village, and even a scene from outer space. Through Google Street View programming, Moyado was able to bring these works into the virtual sphere where users can view them just as they would a real location, without having to visit a museum.

You can download the app and view Moyado's incredible landscapes using a tablet or Google Cardboard VR headset. For a two-dimensional peek at the paintings, check out the images below.

[h/t: City Lab]