The next time you scan a QR code to unlock, you might find yourself chatting with a digital guru, courtesy of the new art-tech platform CONTXT. The concept of the customizable software, an AI chatbot specific to the exhibition, was inspired by the shared belief of its founders that art appreciation should be a conversation. Every work of art has a story, but the challenge has always been that there may not be anyone immediately available to tell it. The writing on the wall cannot answer certain questions, and by the time a gallery visitor or museum visitor gets home, they may have forgotten what they wanted to know. “People at exhibitions often have questions about what they see but don’t have access to structured understanding or background information in real time,” Lukas Amacher, a curator, art collector and entrepreneur who launched the project with developer David Simon, told the Observer. “With CONTXT, visitors can ask questions about the artwork and get answers directly from the center’s database rather than typical Internet results.”
I was surprised to learn that Amacher, who was the managing director of the 1OF1 digital art collective, never learned to code. But “the distinction between computer user and developer is slowly evaporating,” he said in an interview with Seth Goldstein of Let’s Vibe! A podcast. As Simon builds the basic structure of the platform, Amacher can experiment with its functionality, with the goal of building “a very rich layer of context—perfect for art and culture.”
And that is CONTXT, an intelligent artificial intelligence system trained, for each project, for every catalog entry, essay, curator’s note and a piece of explanatory text for the exhibition. On the part of visitors, CONTXT provides, through a standard chat interface, real-time answers to questions, compressing layers of content into meaningful conversations about artists and artworks that can happen while the user is at the exhibition. For institutions, it provides an integrated database and analytics that track direct visitor interactions, helping curators understand which pieces and ideas are resonating the most. “It helps to bridge the gap between the information that a curator can provide in person and the self-guided information of visitors who may find it difficult to access the deeper context of interpretation,” explains Amacher.
Although CONTXT is still in its early stages, it has already attracted interest from museums (especially small ones with limited mediation resources), galleries, corporate collections and art galleries. Earlier this month, the company launched a public research preview of the platform in collaboration with Steve Sacks’ bitforms gallery that includes the current show, “StarPower” by Maya Man and shows dating back to 2002. We took it as a spin, QA tester style, first we asked questions about artists and exhibitions, then we moved on to the equation 90 words solved: Lorem Ipsum text, asking for soup recipes and then to the artist Alexander Reben. We sat down with Amacher—serious questions at hand this time—to find out what CONTXT could mean for the future of how institutions share art and how people experience it.
How did CONTXT come about?
Both my co-founder, David, and I have been in the art world for most of our lives. David is a collector, artist, and engineer, and I have always been a collector as well. My first big purchase was a Fred Sandback painting. We both realized that we view art as a great conversation. Our project came about when we realized that access to information can be limited in the art world, especially in museums and galleries. When you visit an exhibition with a director, you have access to his details, which enriches the experience, but without that, it can be difficult to understand the deeper context. With the advent of LLMs, we saw an opportunity to use this technology to compress the time it takes to get into the context of a work of art—from hours of research to seconds of conversation. Therefore, we set out to explore how we can enhance personal creative experiences using LLMs.
What does the implementation of CONTXT look like in galleries and museums? What do they need to do to get in?
We build core libraries. The first layer is the knowledge base, where you put everything—from director interviews to artwork photos and reference materials like exhibition guides, articles, and even multimedia like videos. This allows visitors to interact with a wider corpus of information. The second layer involves adapting this information to different types of audiences, such as museum visitors or corporate collectors, allowing certain voices to communicate with different groups. The third layer is focused on analytics, where we track which activities are asked the most, which types of questions are asked by visitors and which ideas are heard the most. This gives producers valuable data to understand what engages the audience.
And what is the experience like for the visitor using the tool?
For the guest, it is a way to chat, just like the ones we all use, be it on ChatGPT or other forums. The visitor scans the QR code on the display, which brings up the conversation on their phone. They can ask questions about the exhibition or specific activities, and the tool will provide answers from the selected knowledge base, ensuring that we are ready to quote. This gives visitors the ability to have real-time, meaningful conversations about the artwork they’re sharing without waiting hours to do research or run into misinformation. The tool even allows them to share details directly on social media, which is a fun twist on the “Instagrammable art” trend. Additionally, visitors can save their interactions, creating a personal archive of their experience at the show.
Can galleries and museums use CONTXT in addition to exhibitions?
Yes, absolutely. We also developed a tool for galleries that allows them to create a mobile-friendly, interactive experience where visitors can directly interact with the descriptions and works of art. Instead of just scanning a PDF or reading a basic label, visitors can have a stimulating conversation, ask questions and dive deeper into the work. This feature is especially useful for galleries that want to present their works in an attractive and modern way, combining touch and digital.
What kind of response have you received from artists? Are they worried about losing control of their narrative?
I love that you asked this! It’s something we plan to fix in the future. We want to give artists and curators the ability to control the narrative. Artists can create their own databases—most importantly mood boards—where they can share their statements, inspiration, and ideas. Producers can then link the context of their exhibition to the artist’s knowledge base, allowing them to better represent the artist’s vision. This tool is not just for visitors; designed for an entire ecosystem to represent ideas authentically and allow artists to guide the conversation.
Do you have any concerns on the data privacy side, especially since you’re collecting interaction data and people’s questions may stray into personal ones?
The information we collect is general in nature. For example, galleries can see which works are most requested, what types of questions people are asking, and how the works of art interact with them. We collect information from the question species-that people ask about biographical details, descriptions of thoughts or written narratives. But the actual data is anonymized, so it’s more about helping pollsters understand what ideas resonate with audiences than tracking individuals.
How is the interest of the institution so far? Are the challenges museums and galleries looking to solve the ones you expected?
We spoke to several museums, galleries, and corporate collections. Interestingly, many small and medium-sized museums have reached out because they have limited media budgets and need a cost-effective way to help visitors interact with their exhibits. The ability to provide multilingual support and make the experience more accessible is a big draw. We’ve also seen interest from art fairs, which can benefit from providing deeper engagement for visitors who aren’t really there to buy but want to learn more.
What’s next for the project?
We’re rolling out pilots, and soon, we’ll be ready to launch. We’re excited to see how it’s received and how visitors interact with the artwork when they can interact with a collection of ideas in real time. The overall goal is to give both advertisers and visitors the tools to conduct deep, meaningful conversations about art.
Many Art Conversations
