“Drawing is putting a line (a)round an idea.” —Matisse

“Bring a stick and a bottle of ink to class”. After three months in drawing class I didn’t expect to hear that. But we spent the next morning drawing with a twig I picked up from under a tree and India ink. It was liberating. I drew freely without the slightest concern for anything but the base elements. It was freeing and exciting and made drawing fun again after months of careful, thoughtful work.

Opening up the Brushes app for the first time I got those same feelings. I know it has layers, an extraordinary color palette tool, multiple brushes and of course undo. But there is something primary about the experience. You swipe and fill color with your finger. Nothing seems more direct.

I like a drawing experience that invites me to be spontaneous, probably because it is so forgiving. With a limitless number of canvases, I can be raw with no thought to waste or judgment. This is the promise of a tech tool that delivers an immediate response like pencil, like paint.

However, brushes is a very powerful app. One my favorite features is Brushes Viewer, the ability to save the file as QuickTime movie and watch your process play back in rapid animation. This is a remarkable aid in viewing your or someone else’s thinking. What better way to see that come to life than with this feature.

I have decided to make some time for this app on a regular basis. I’ll share my efforts soon.

Please reduce, reuse, and recycle these ideas.