Could Patrick Hoelck's New App Be The Future of Art Shows?

"Too long," that's the amount of time photographer Patrick Hoelck says it took to develop his new app, Patrick Hotel. "It took forever and a bunch of engineers to get going."

But trust us, it's been worth the wait.

Photographer Patrick Hoelck Talks New App Patrick Hotel

Charlotte Taschen introduces Patrick Hotel from Patrick Hoelck on Vimeo.

Hoelck's new app—based on his successful art installment Polaroid Hotel—seeks to find a way to take the time-honored tradition of an art show and bring it into the gadget-obsessed modern world.

While the original Polaroid Hotel book was printed in limited quantities and the art installation was displayed locally, the app offers not only easy access but behind-the-scenes commentary on every picture—including a camera option that asks users to join in on the fun. The feature lets people create their own polaroids and easily post them to social media.

"I think that’s the future of art shows," he says, describing the interactive quality of a recent show he attended where he was given headphones that could sense which piece of work he was looking at and offer commentary.

In a time when people have all sorts of new multimedia and technological advances at the tips of their fingers (literally), Hoelck's approach allows artists to create something that seems intimate and personally tailored to the viewer.

So, how did the idea for the app come about?

"I felt like doing it and then releasing it. I like to figure it out as I go," Hoelck says. "I don’t have that vision, I don’t go, ‘Oh, I’m going to do this. I’m going to do this.’”

The artist explains how the app started as a way to showcase Polaroid Hotel and then steamrolled into something more.

"Making an app you’re like, well what’s different? So then I had the commentary," he says. The commentary gives a glimpse into Hoelck's life and work, including his amusing observations about celebrity subjects like Pharrell.

And as for the other feature:

I just thought it would be an interesting kind of thing to be able to turn any photograph on your camera roll into a polaroid.

He says they also have some exciting new features in development.

The artist attributes the success of this project to all the contributions he's received through his art crowdsourcing project bcause.

With people's support, we were able to put this out. So just a big thank you, you know?

Check out Patrick Hoelck's app, 'Patrick Hotel' in the app store, and find out more information about bcause here.