Common Sense Media Review
By Dana Anderson
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Painting app offers lots of options for creative expression.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 9+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Download
Videos and Photos
Brushes Redux
What's It About?
Kids begin by simply experimenting -- swiping and then tapping to choose a color from the color wheel. Then kids choose one of 12 basic brushes (that can all be tweaked with numerous options) and create. Select a blank palette or paint on a photo or photos from your device's library. Pinch to zoom or change the palette size. It's easy to undo mistakes. Kids can also watch their creations played back step-by-step, and share with others via Twitter or email.
Is It Any Good?
BRUSHES 3 is a totally revamped version of the original Brushes app, which won an Apple design award in 2010 and was featured as the method used to create a cover of The New Yorker. Don't expect your child's drawings to be exactly magazine-cover worthy when they first start using this app, though. The numerous features can create masterpieces and messes.
It's fun to take a photo from your device's camera roll and add color, drawing, or even make a collage of photos on one canvas and add more drawn art to the mix. Or simply take a blank canvas and try out different brushes to see what comes out of some freestyle drawing fun. It would be nice to see a tutorial added. Still, Brushes 3 is easy enough for kids to use but complex enough for serious artists to see the possibilities.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Talk about all of the different brushes. What mood can different brushes evoke in your art?
If your kid seems stuck using just the basic brushes and features, help them dig deeper into all of the options on Brushes 3. They may not be obvious at first to many kids.
App Details
- Devices : iPhone , iPod Touch , iPad
- Subjects : Arts : drawing , painting
- Skills : Tech Skills : digital creation , Creativity : imagination , making new creations
- Pricing structure : Free
- Release date : October 17, 2012
- Genre : Entertainment
- Publisher : Taptrix, Inc.
- Version : 3.2
- Minimum software requirements : iOS 8.0 or later
- Last updated : November 11, 2020
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