Frustrated that you haven't been able to use the museum-portrait feature on your Google Arts & Culture app? You are not alone. If you're plagued by persistent thoughts of: Why is the Google Arts & Culture app not working, the app is currently only available in the U.S. However, plenty of people in the U.S. are experiencing major FOMO because they haven't been able to use the app to find their museum-portrait doppelgänger. It seems like the app hasn't rolled out to everyone yet; depending on where you live, you might not be able to access the face-matching part of the app at all, at least for now. According to TechCrunch, "Google declined to comment when we asked about its rollout intentions for the feature." (Bustle reached out to Google for comment and will update upon response.)
UPDATE: In an email response to Bustle, a Google rep redirected readers to Google Arts & Culture Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook posts clarifying the app's availability. The social media posts read: "Thanks everyone for sharing your awesome #GoogleArts#selfie matches! This mobile experiment (accessible at http://g.co/arts/selfie ) is currently available in parts of the US. Stay tuned as we try to improve and expand!"
EARLIER: While the Google Arts & Culture app has been around for a while with features that allow you to zoom in on famous works of art from all over the world, experience exhibits via virtual reality by using the Google Cardboard viewer, filter artwork by color and time period, stay up to date about museum events near you, and more, the recently added museum-portrait-selfie feature has made the app go viral over the last few days. However, not everyone has had the option to waste an entire day snapping selfies to see which museum portrait they most resemble — though many wish they could.
Here is what the app looks like in action, if you haven't had a chance to test it our yourself.
If you already have the app installed on your phone because you are interested in arts and culture, try updating the Google Arts & Culture app and then scrolling down to find the museum-portrait feature. To do this, first go to the app store, and hit "updates" on the bottom right-hand corner.
Then scroll to see if the Google Arts & Culture app is listed under "pending updates." If it is, hit "update" and try reopening the app once it's done updating.
If that does not work, other Twitter users are suggesting a VPN workaround to trick your phone into thinking you're in a different location. However, proceed with caution.
Unfortunately, other than relocating to someplace that DOES support the app (for instance, New York City), you might be out of luck if you are unable to access it — that is, at least for now.
It is easy to see why people are so excited to try out the app — some of the matches are pretty boss.
While others don't love their matches, they are taking it with a grain of salt (after all, some of the "matches" are so hilarious because of their inaccuracy).
But, some of the matches are eerily accurate.
While most people get a different match every time they take a selfie, some people are one of a kind.
If you really can't handle not being able to participate in this epic time suck, TechCrunch reported that there are a few other apps that can turn your selfie into art. Unfortunately, they won't match you with a historical painting.
If you are an Android user, Google Play has an app called My Twin Celeb that can match you with your celebrity doppelgänger.
Another Google Play app called Doppeltime has a similar feature, as does iTunes' Who Do I Look Like — Celebrity. The silver lining here is that you're probably going to be happier with your celeb matches than you are with your museum-portrait matches. I'm telling you, some of these pairings are truly bizarre.
