With the support of NEA, FiftyThree will grow their product offerings in business and education.
In March 2015, FiftyThree announced raising a $30 million Series B round of funding, led by Dayna Grayson at New Enterprise Associates (NEA). In 2014, FiftyThree moved their NYC headquarters to 60 Hudson, the original home of the Western Union Company and moved their Seattle offices to the historic Pioneer Square. Skillshare classes were taught by artist Shantell Martin and data visualization expert Catherine Madden.
They have subsequently partnered with (RED) to raise awareness and funds for AIDS, GE to use art to visualize brain activity, and Skillshare to teach classes using Paper. įiftyThree collaborated with Women's Wear Daily in February 2013 to live sketch Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York City, and in July 2013 they partnered with Historic Royal Palaces in London to bring technology to the Fashion Rules exhibition at Kensington Palace. Other investors included SV Angel's Ron Conway, Highline Ventures' Shana Fisher, Thrive Capital's Josh Kushner, and Twitter / Square founder Jack Dorsey. In June 2013, FiftyThree announced raising a $15 million Series A round of funding, led by Chris Dixon at Andreessen Horowitz. As of December 2014, the company employs 51 people. The team is composed of employees who have previously worked at Microsoft, Sonos, Google, Adobe, Apple, and Nike, among other companies. Since its inception, the company has maintained a nearly 1:1 ratio of designers to engineers. a sort of invisible sphere encompassing head, heart, and blank canvas." Two additional products, Book by FiftyThree and Moleskine, and Pencil by FiftyThree, were released in 2013, followed by the 2014 releases of the FiftyThree SDK and Mix, and the release of Paper 3.0.Īccording to a 2013 article on Wired, the name FiftyThree references the physical space in which a person creates: "An average human's arm's reach is 53 centimeters . Initially operating out of Petschnigg's apartment, they began work on their first product, Paper, which launched in March 2012 and was chosen by Apple as the iPad App of the Year.
Former colleagues at Microsoft, the company aimed to build creativity tools that were less encumbered by the dense UI common to software used by creative professionals.
Musicians can create melodies on the go with this handy app that allows you to record, save, and mix sounds.FiftyThree was co-founded in 2011 by Georg Petschnigg, Jonathan Harris, Julian Walker, and Andrew S. PenultimateĬreative writers and busy students alike will enjoy this note-taking app that saves notes in a searchable database and artfully depicts your unique penmanship for a personalized touch. Deviant Artĭeviant describes their mobile app as “the world’s largest art gallery in your hand.” Deviant Art allows you to browse and search artwork to discover new concepts, genres, and emerging talents and then lets you communicate with fellow creators. Get organized with ScatterBrain, which allows you to label and search important dates, deadlines, and notes. Let's face it: you juggle a million deadlines and to-do lists. Concept maps can be shared among fellow students along with images, comments, and feedback. Popplet is ideal for brainstorming your way through the creative process either individually or as part of a team. The app allows users to create animations and GIFs with frame duplication, specialized tools, and sketching capabilities. LoopĪrt and design enthusiasts who like to play with animation will adore Loop.
The Pro version lets you change the canvas size and orientation as well as zoom when needed.
Sketcher Pro is a fun and simple tool for Android users that allows you to sketch on the go, with 12 brushes, an eraser, and a color selector. You can also use this app to view your own Behance portfolio and stats. BehanceĪvailable on the App Store and Google Play, Behance lets you browse the millions of art pieces on their site, or to check in on the artists you already follow. BrushesĬonvenient and fun, this mobile painting application gives you access to a brush and canvas any time and anywhere with the availability of your iPad. This artsy app affords users an interface with watercolor, charcoal, architecture, and illustration features for a broad spectrum of possibilities. Mobile apps, in particular, have much to offer those of us who aspire to a life of creativity, and we think these 10 apps are all worth a look. Today’s artists have an ever-increasing number of ways to engage their own creativity, to find inspiration, and to share their work using the latest technology.