Inspired by the internet phenomenon of selfies, the Art Stories FACES game uses famous painting portraits to teach children about the basics of visual art. The game creator and one of Europeana’s 2016 Challenge winners, the Italian startup Art Stories, has recently released an improved version of FACES. The game went from using five to 30 openly licensed paintings from famous international collections. Artworks from the Rijksmuseum, the Metropolitan Museum in New York and Europeana are displayed for kids to play with.

A screenshot of Art Stories FACES. CC BY-SA FACES

Art Stories founder, Federica Pascotto, tells more about the new release: ‘By playing different games (jigsaws, finding details, identifying shapes, patterns and elements), kids are challenged in their observation skills and learn what to watch when observing an artwork. We have completely changed the graphic interface, and the game’s mechanics: each game gives kids a score, and by scoring they are taken to the timeline, that can be completed only by answering all questions correctly.’ The timeline is a brand-new game: a visual quiz connected to the paintings children have been playing with. It is a fun way to convey content.

Since its launch (on 11 January), the new version of the app has had more than 31K downloads, mostly from the USA and Canada, then followed by Europe, Asia Pacific and Latin America. For a sneak peek at the app, play a free version of the game! 

Download the new and improved Art Stories FACES on the App Store!

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