Boston art museum makes works mobile

updated 7:38 a.m. ET Sept. 13, 2007

BOSTON - Masterpieces are going mobile at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts.

The MFA said Wednesday it will sell downloads of works by artists such as Claude Monet and Edward Hopper for cell phones and other mobile devices. Users also will get to see Japanese postcards and other works not often displayed in exhibit halls because of sensitivity to light.

The MFA is the first museum in the United States to make such downloading available, said Kim French, a museum spokeswoman.

Art enthusiasts can buy a single image for $1.99 or choose a $4.99-a-month subscription plan that includes up to five images per month and a bonus exclusive image of the month.

Mobile users can also send a text message to MYMFA (69632), typing in a keyword such as "lily," to download Claude Monet (Fees still apply).

Among the museum's 50 offerings at launch, with plans to add more, are John Singer Sargent's "The Daughters of Edward Darley Boit," 1882; "George Washington," by Gilbert Stuart, American, 1796; "Lighthouse and Buildings, Portland Head, Cape Elizabeth, Maine," 1927, by Edward Hopper and Pierre-Auguste Renoir's "Dance at Bougival, 1883.

"We're doing this because we want to help people make art a great part of their lives," French said.

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