Wacom Intuos3 Art Marker is announced. The Wacom Intuos3 Art Marker is compatible with the Intuos3 pen tablet Cintiq 21UX display. The Art Marker employs rotation sensing technology - by rotating the pen at different angles through 360 degrees, a drawn line becomes narrow or broad. will cost £49.99 in the UK. The new Intuos3 Art Marker comes with one standard plastic nib and two felt nibs and is available in mid-April.

Wacom Europe Press Release

Wacom Intuos3 Art Marker enhances digital image creation with new rotation sensing technology

Produce virtually any type of brush effect or marker stroke, including calligraphy

WACOM Europe GbmH launches the new Intuos3 Art Marker for use with its successful Intuos3 pen tablet system and Cintiq 21UX Interactive Pen Display. The Intuos3 Art Marker is the first Wacom pen of its kind, encompassing not only the Intuos3′s features of pressure and tilt, but also rotation sensing technology. With a new chisel-shaped nib, the Intuos3 Art Marker is a versatile tool, enabling digital media professionals, including artists, illustrators, graphics and industrial designers to create virtually any type of brush effect or marker stroke and emulate calligraphic pens. The pen will be available in the UK from mid-April, priced at £49.99 (excl VAT).

Rotation sensing technology works using dual coils at the pen’s tip, which allow the tablet to determine the angle at which the pen is rotated. By rotating the pen at different angles through 360 degrees, a drawn line becomes narrow or broad, providing the user with the ability to draw, paint, design and illustrate an image with more control and freedom.

The Intuos3 Art Marker works using Wacom’s patented cordless and battery-free technology. The pen supports 1024 levels of pressure sensitivity to give greater control over each stroke and also features interchangeable nibs. The user can choose between a traditional hard plastic nib and a felt nib that provides a paper-like friction on the tablet, for a close to natural feeling when painting and drawing.

Adding a new dimension to digital illustration, the Intuos3 Art Marker has been designed for a variety of digital media professionals, including artists, illustrators and graphics designers as well as automotive, fashion and industrial designers. They can utilise the pens capabilities for a range of functions including – enhancing expressive illustrations, tight comps, storyboards and technical drawings.

The pen is an ideal tool for calligraphers for creating calligraphic effects simply by rotating the pen on the surface of the Intuos3 tablet. The Art Marker is also supported by Wacom’s Cintiq 21UX’s Interactive Pen Display, enabling users to draw directly onto the screen’s surface – ideal for industrial designers, automotive and fashion designers.

Software support
The new rotation sensing technology of the Intuos3 Art Marker will be supported by Adobe Photoshop CS2 and Adobe Illustrator CS2. Matthew Richmond, founding partner and creative director, The Chopping Block, an award-winning graphic design studio in New York, comments: “The Wacom Intuos3 Art Marker and Adobe Illustrator CS2 completely change the landscape of digital drawing. The results are remarkable - the control over rotation, stroke and pressure approaches the response of pen and brush with paper. It just feels right.”

Additionally Wacom has been working with Corel, who is developing a set of customised brushes for Painter IX that will support the new Art Marker. These will be available to download from the Corel and Wacom website shortly after the pen is launched. “Never has technology so faithfully captured the traditional art experience,” said Chris Boba, product manager for Corel Painter IX. “The combination of Wacom’s new Intuos3 Art Marker with the new lifelike brushes in Painter IX enables artists to transcend the digital divide and explore a brave new world of creative freedom.”

Price and availability
The new Intuos3 Art Marker comes with one standard plastic nib and two felt nibs and will be available in the UK from mid-April, priced at £49.99 (excl VAT). It is supported by a 2-year warranty.