By Michael Jeffrey

A new application for smartphones now features well-known UK buildings.

The Singletary Center for the Arts and The Art Museum at UK are two of the first 10 organizations included in the “Arts and Culture” category of the new smartphone application, Travel Kentucky.

Travel Kentucky is a pocket-sized personal tour guide developed by Kentucky Monthly Magazine to provide an accurate, detailed and user-friendly guide to every corner of the Bluegrass state. It features lodging, dining, shopping, historic sights, arts, culture and many more.

“We are always looking for more avenues to promote our events, and the increased popularity of Facebook, Twitter and smartphone apps is where we need to start looking in the future,” Summer Gossett, the Singletary Center’s ticketing and marketing director, said.

Once a destination has been selected, the description of the venue, address, reviews, operating hours and upcoming events are clearly displayed with external links.

The app will then provide turn-by-turn directions made possible by Google maps and GPS tracking technology. Travel Kentucky also provides the user with interactive walking tours of entire regions of Kentucky.

“This will undoubtedly enhance the exposure and appreciation of everything that Lexington has to offer,” Jason Burgard, a performing arts junior, said.

Born and raised in Lexington, Gossett has witnessed the rapid growth in awareness of the arts over the last couple decades.

“I’ve never felt that Lexington has been more awake than now,” Gossett said.

Since the opening of the Otis Singletary Center in 1979, it has served more than 3.7 million people and hosts an average of 400 events and performances a year.

“I’ve worked in the arts since I graduated college, both in the visual arts and performing arts, and I’ve met a slew of people in town who work immensely hard to make sure that the arts are a key factor of life in Lexington,” Gossett said.

As the end of the school year approaches, there are only a few events left at the Singletary, which includes the 8th Annual School of Music Benefit Concert featuring Brahm’s Requiem on April 22, and Love Letters, directed by new Fine Arts College Dean Michael Tick, April 29-30.

Those events and upcoming summer events are described in more detail on the “Travel Kentucky” application, now available for free download on the Google Android Market and the iTunes App Store.