Programs and Tools for Digital Art-Making on a Tablet or Phone
There is a huge world out there for digital artists. A never ending supply of apps and software makes digital art-making a possibility for anyone who can find access to a computer, tablet or smart phone. And if you don't have a device of your own, local libraries often have computers and tablets with creative software pre-installed that you can use.
Digital Art-Making Software and Apps
To explore specific apps and software, click on the name of each for a video tutorial and Download.
Apps with free versions:
Krita Tutorial Download App
Sumo Paint Tutorial Download App
Sketchpad Tutorial Download App
MediBang Paint Pro Tutorial Download App
Figma (great for creating vector images) Tutorial Download App
Vectr (free software that is like Adobe Illustrator) Tutorial Download App
Paper by WeTransfer (Great for a digital visual journal!) Tutorial Download App
Software with paid subscription:
Procreate Tutorial Download App
Adobe Illustrator (creating visual graphics) Tutorial Advanced Tutorial
Adobe InDesign (graphic design layout) Tutorial Advanced Tutorial
Adobe Photoshop Tutorial Advanced Tutorial
* When working with Adobe Creative Suite use the graphic below to decide which program is best suited for your needs.
Tools for Digital Art-Making
Computer
Ipad / Tablet
Drawing pad or tablet
Apple Pen
Stylus
Mouse
Artists working with Digital Art-Making Software
British painter, photographer and printmaker, David Hockney is an icon of the 1960's Modern art and Pop art movements. His work was an inspiration to other contemporary artists looking for new and innovative ways to explore artists' mediums. Today, Hockney is embracing digital art. Hockney's digital works make up a significant part of an exhibit in Nice, France—where his digital paintings line the walls of the Matisse Museum.
Digital art is finding it's place among the traditional art mediums such as painting and sculpture. For some, digital art has created opportunities to transform their artwork. Aiste Stancikaite is a Lithuanian artist that digitally brings her pencil drawings to life. A mix of editing and animation techniques, Aiste creates visually intriguing gifs of her monochromatic pencil drawings.
© Aistė Stancikaitė
Valentin Pavageau is another inspiring digital artist from France. He creates dream-like landscapes with a combination of graphic elements and collage. Pavageau embraces the power of digital art to seamlessly incorporate graphics, photography and digital drawing/painting.
Methods for Digital Art-Making
Paper Basics
Sketchpad Basics
Turning a sketch into a vector image on Adobe Illustrator
Studio Practice
Create a sketch of an object, person or scene using traditional mediums like paper and pencil or digital sketching tools like Paper by WeTransfer.
Download an image of the sketch into a digital art-making tool and create a finished artwork based on the sketch. Remember to use layers, where possible, to give yourself flexibility when moving between colors and sections of your design.
Share an image of your sketch and of your final image in the comments below! Include any questions you might have about the process or tools.
Vocabulary
mediums the materials used to make an artwork
gifs a digital format for static images or animation
monochromatic utilization of only one color
Lesson Plan and Worksheets
Adaptation for grades 5 and under
Software/Apps: Toy Theatre
Sources
Image of Hockney in studio
Image Gallery GIFs by Aiste Stancikaite
Image Gallery of work by Valentin Pavageau
Thanks for compiling this awesome resource for digital art apps and ideas. This is my first year teaching digital art for 5th and 6th grade and I'm excited to look into some of these apps I haven't heard of before. We just finished making digital collages using the app Sketchbook. After watching your tutorial on Paper, I think we might have to try that app next. I'll share my digital collage example here.