Most of us will never have the opportunity to visit the world-famous Louvre museum in Paris, more’s the pity; there’s a stop that everyone should add to their bucket list. You may know it best for housing famous treasures like DaVinci’s Mona Lisa, the Code of Hammurabi, and the 2nd century statue of Venus de Milo that is, like many such antiquities, missing its arms. But these are just a few of the many unique and amazing pieces that can be seen on display in the Louvre. There are all kinds of paintings and sculptures that you might never know about unless you fly to the City of Lights to see them for yourself. And while there’s certainly no substitute for witnessing these incredible works of art up close, you can get a minute estimation of their magnificence and beauty by downloading the free Musée du Louvre app for your favorite iDevice. For the person looking to add a little class to their décor, this is one app that you won’t want to pass up.

The truly wonderful thing about this app is that it gives you access to some of the most beloved pieces of artwork in history, even if you can’t visit the Louvre in person. You can start by taking a virtual tour of the Louvre palace to learn about the building and its history. And from there you’ll have access to 100 masterpieces featured in the museum, including paintings by artists like Bosch, Titian, and Raphael (just to name a few) as well as Greek sculptures and ancient works of art like a stele depicting Egyptian princess Nefertiabet. With over 500 images (including details and zoom functionality) you’re sure to spend many hours enjoying your pocket museum. And the app provides you with more than just a glance at a few famous works of art.

For one thing, you can call up information on each entry, including the name, artist, and date of the work, along with a description of what you’re seeing, such as the medium, key aspects of the artwork, and even pertinent historical facts in some cases to give you a frame of reference for the significance of a particular piece. From there you can send favorite works to your friends via email or Facebook, and you can even use the in-app purchase feature to download images to your phone or tablet (to use as wallpaper or assign to contacts as their image). And if you somehow happen to make your way to Paris, the app even has a visitor information feature that provides you with hours of operation, admission fees, maps, and so on.

At this point you may be asking yourself how this app applies to home décor projects. After all, it doesn’t teach you how to install tile, assemble indoor water falls, or even hang art. What it can give you is an artistic aesthetic. For one thing, you could always order prints of your favorite pieces to adorn your own walls with a little slice of the Louvre collection (although you can’t order them through the app). But you can also gain an awareness and appreciation of several different styles of art. In other words, it can act as a springboard for expanding and enhancing your personal sense of style. And this can definitely be applied to any interior decorating project. All you have to do is download the Musée du Louvre app to get started.

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