Sometimes we get stuck and just aren't sure what to draw. Drawing prompts are perfect for getting our brains inspired and our creativity flowing.
A Unicorn Tapestry
Add a unicorn to the field of flowers. This prompt is inspired by one of the Unicorn Tapestries woven during medieval times. In the scene a unicorn rests in a garden but is also enclosed by a fence.
Add your own unicorn, resting, trotting, playing - doing whatever you would like.
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A Unicorn Tapestry
Add a unicorn to the field of flowers. This prompt is inspired by one of the Unicorn Tapestries woven during medieval times. In the scene a unicorn rests in a garden but is also enclosed by a fence.
Add your own unicorn, resting, trotting, playing - doing whatever you would like.
Create a "Femme Maison"
This prompt is inspired by Louise Bourgeois and her paintings called Femme Maisons, or woman house. Louise would often use architecture to represent her feelings. What do you think a part woman part house represents?
Add your house drawing onto the top half of the body we got started for you.
Finish the Matisse Painting
This painting by Henri Matisse is called Harmony in Red and has Lots of patterns and designs on the walls and the table cloth. Add your own pattern to the room. Also, what do you want to find outside the window?
Polka Dot the Pumpkins
Inspired by Yayoi Kusama who is known for her polka dotted pumpkins. Plus you can take the prompt even father by cutting out your pumpkins and adding them to a string to make a garland.
Draw your own version of Luna the friendly monster
See what monster creature you come up with as you check off the different characteristics of Luna. You can even see how many different versions of Luna you can come up with.
Design & Color a Greek Statue
Did you know Greek and Roman sculptures used to be full of color and highly decorated?
Add details to this greek sculpture - and don't forget some color!
What's crossing the street?
Use your imagination to sketch what might be crossing the street - could it be animals? fantastical creatures? walking flowers? Anything goes!
Finish the Keith Haring inspired story
Keith Haring's art style has become very well known and recognizable with his simplified figures. Even though his art was very simple, it was also very powerful and often shared a story. Finish this Haring inspired story with your own simple drawings. Show us what happens to the dog.
Cy Twombly inspired Symbols
While traveling through Europe studying art Twombly became really inspired by Etruscan artifacts. He filled his sketchbooks with symbolic icons. These were made with rough, quick marks. Try sketching your own symbols inspired by what's around you, or you could look up Etruscan art.
Alien Friends
Sketch some alien friends inspire by nature.
Start sketching a leaf, seed, petals, fruit, nut, anything and then add some arms, legs, and eyes.
Mary Blair Alice in Wonderlan
Mary Blair was known for her illustrations for Disney and one of the shows she worked on was Alice in Wonderland. In this piece Alice is seen peering through the woods to see the white rabbits house. Sketch what you think Alice discovers in the woods.
Sophie Tauber-Arp Inspired Dada Head
Dada is an art movement that was full of art that was often nonsensical and made from found objects. Sophie was a major artist of this movement. She made a sculpture of an abstract head and took a self portrait with it. Design your own abstract Dada head, cut it out, and take a picture with it, just like Sophie.
Zaha Hadid Inspired Architecture
Zaha Hadid, an architect known for her unique designs, started a lot of her buildings with abstract sketches and paintings. Transform the squiggly lines into architecture, anything goes, create whatever comes to your mind.
Niki de Saint Phalle
Inspired Brain
What's growing out of your brain? Everything started with a drawing for Niki, she often even used drawing as a form of journaling. This prompt is based off one of her drawings of what's going on in her brain. Look at the original artwork first for inspiration and then draw what's going on in your brain.
What's floating in the Great Wave?
The Great Wave is a famous artwork by Hokusai and was created in the early 1800s by woodblock printing. Get inspired by this artwork and then have some fun - what crazy things might you dream up that could be found riding this great wave?
Surround Frida with fantastical animals
Frida painted a lot of self portraits. In some of them she surrounds herself with animals. She is also known for her surreal paintings which included things that were dreamlike and out of this world. For this prompt add some animal creatures surrounding Frida that are fantastical and dreamlike or surreal.
Maria Prymachenko
coloring page
This prompt is instead a coloring page to honor the Ukrainian artist, Maria Pryachenko. A lot of her paintings were recently burned in the fighting that has begun. Her art helps tell the rich stories and goodness of her people. Use this coloring page to begin a conversation about current events.
Basquiat Skull
Jean - Michel Basquiat was an American artist known for his abstract graffiti style art. One is his artworks, titled Skull, was inspired by a medical book he read as a kid.
Now its your turn, fill in the Basuiat inspired skull with abstract graffiti lines.
Inspired by Alma Thomas
Alma was an artist and teacher known for her abstract artworks. Her art was inspired by nature and space. Sometimes she would imagine what something might look like from high up above in the air. This prompt is inspired by an artwork that showed what a field of flowers might look like from a birds-eye view. So draw a bird flying over the field and don't forget to add in colors.
Happy Lunar New Year
It's the year of the tiger! Take some time to learn more about Lunar New Year and either sketch a tiger between the leaves or, for your younger artists, encourage them to add some stripes and shapes to the tiger we sketched.
Fill the Andy Warhol shoe with ornaments
Andy started his career as an advertising and fashion illustrator. He created a bunch of Christmas themed prints and one of those inspired this prompt. Add some ornaments and a holiday message.
Add a float (or balloon) to the parade
Have you ever watched the parade on Thanksgiving? What favorite character or person or thing would you love to see floating down the NYC streets?
Add flowers to the Van Gogh vase
Add some flowers to the Van Gogh vase. To Vincent sunflowers meant gratitude and he painted multiple versions. Sketch your own version now.
Create a Cézanne inspired still life
Paul Cézanne is known for his beautiful post-impressionism still lifes (paintings of everyday objects usually arranged on a table). Sketch your own version of a still life. Before you start look up some of Cézanne's paintings for inspiration.
Create your own Van Gogh shoes
Van Gogh painted multiple pairs of shoes during his career, a lot of them worn out. Sketch a pair of your own shoes in a Van Gogh style. You can also add color to the outline of his own painting.
Create a Dali inspired tree
Salvador Dali, a surrealist artist known for his melting clocks, created a series of prints for Hallmark cards in the 1950s. This piece is called Christmas Tree of Butterflies. Add some color to the finished one or create your own Dali inspired tree.
Design a Building Facade
A facade is like the face of the building, it’s what the outside looks like. Make sure you add some windows, a door, and decorations.
Add Your Portrait to the Mirror
This prompt is inspired by a painting by Pablo Picasso titled, “Girl Before a Mirror.” Add your own Picasso inspired portrait to the mirror.
Redesign Van Gogh’s Skeleton
Van Gogh’s painted a painting of a skeleton while studying art, he added a cigarette for some dark humor. How could you redesign the skeleton and make it your own?
What made him scream?
Have you seen this famous painting by Edvard Munch called “The Scream?” I have always wondered what made him scream. Add what you think gave him a freight.
Grow some pumpkins!
Have you made a trip to the pumpkin patch yet? Take some time to notice all the different shapes and sizes that pumpkins come in and sketch some of your own.
Design some tarot cards
Tarot cards are used in fortune telling. Together the different cards help to tell a story. Design a few of the cards that might be found in a tarot deck.
Get inspired by Niki de Saint Phalle
One thing Niki created was sculptures that were also playgrounds. Design your own play structure inspired by her work. Add on to what we got started or draw your own.
Design a backpack
It’s time for back to school! If you could create your own backpack what would it look like?
Add something fantastical to Starry Night
You are probably familiar with the painting Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh. Add something magical or silly from your own imagination to the painting. Don’t forget to add some color too!
Creative quote design
Get inspired by Henri Matisse and design your own quote page. Younger kids you can color in what we drew and older kids can draw their own after getting inspired by Matisse.
Add some color to the sculpture
This sculpture by Jean Dubuffet looks like a coloring book come to life. We felt inspired to add color and wanted to give you a chance to too.
Draw a station for the train
This train needs a station to pull into! Design a station for the train - is it in the city? Is it in nature? Use your imagination to create a unique building.
Grow a Garden
Do you grow a garden in the summer? What do you like to plant? If you don’t have a garden that’s okay too, think about what you might want to grow if you had a garden and sketch it.
Catch some bugs!
Do you like to gather bugs in the summer? What do you like to catch? Sketch some bugs in the jar.
Draw some Dinosaurs!
What’s your favorite Dino? Add some dinosaurs to the scene.
Shapes Animals
Use simple shapes you make animal friends. Draw your own or challenge yourself to start with the shapes we got started for you.
Meet My Pet
If you could have any pet in the world, what would it be?
Sketch your pet and give it a name.
Design some kites!
Add some designs to the empty kites and then design your own unique kite.
Use simple shapes to design a castle
What type of castle will you create using rectangles, squares, triangles, and circles? Will it be symmetrical or asymmetrical ?
Draw a Mermaid
Add a mermaid to the scene - you could draw yourself as a sea person or create your own mer-creature.
Where in the World?
If you could fly anywhere in the world where would you want to go?
Sketch what you would want to see and do
Add Some Animals to the Habitat
What is your favorite animal to see at the zoo? Sketch some animals playing in their habitat
Design a Carousel
Brainstorm a theme for your carousel, then add animals or creatures for people to ride on and decorations.
Sketch the life of a butterfly
What do the different stages of a butterflies life look like?
Look up some pictures and sketch out what you discover.
Make a color wheel
Fill in the color wheel!
Primary colors = red, yellow, & blue.
Secondary colors = primary + primary.
Tertiary colors = primary + secondary.
Design a storefront
If you had your own shop what would you sell? What would it be called? What would be in the windows?
Design some paper doll clothes
Pick a doll and design some clothes for them. Summer clothes, winter clothes, pjs, whatever you want!
Welcome to the Carnival
Have you ever been to a carnival or fair? What are your favorite things you find there? If you haven’t been, look up some images online a sketch what stands out to you
End of the Rainbow
What would you find at the end of a rainbow? Treasure? Fun surprise? Something yummy to eat? It’s up to you!
Design a Playground
What do you like like to play on at the playground? Finish the design that I got started for you to create your dream playground.
What's on your breakfast plate?
What do you like to find on your breakfast plate in the morning? Create your dream breakfast meal!
Happy Lunar New Year!
Learn more about Lunar New Year and use this as a place to sketch something new that you discovered.
Give the flowers a vase!
What could you transform into a vase? Are there any objects or toys you could find around the house that could be used as a vase?
What's in the fish bowl?
What do you find in the fish bowl?
Who's Skating?
Who might be skating around on these rollerblades? Add a creature, person, or animal.
Add some donuts to the box
What is your favorite kind of donut? Add a mixture of donut options. See how creative you can be with their designs.
What's in the cave?
Use your imagination - what do you discover in the cave?
What's growing out of the garbage?
Imagine what might be growing out of the trash. You could make it pretty, or silly or even scary.
Sketch a spaceship
Grab a random object from your kitchen and use that as inspiration for your design.
Design a gingerbread house
What would you put on your gingerbread house if you could add anything you wanted? Use your imagination to design your own unique holiday house!
Draw a holiday bouquet
What types of flowers and plants do you see around the holidays? Sketch out some ideas and then design a bouquet.
Design a skateboard
Add your own unique design to the skateboard! Maybe its something silly, something you like, or a phrase you like to use.
Draw snowmen in a winter wonderland
Get creative with your snowmen - what different objects can you use for eyes, a nose, arms, and a hat. How many snowmen are there? Try sketching them in different sizes.
Draw an animal + an accessory
Sketch an animal and then give it an accessory! Download the list of animals + accessories I made and pick at random to help get you started.
What's on your desk?
Draw what your desk or work space or creative space looks like. You can add stuff to the desk I drew or draw your own!
What's on the branch?
Imagine what might be sitting on a branch outside your home - maybe its a creature, an animal, or a toy; anything goes!
What's in the candy bowl?
Use your imagination and sketch what you found in the candy bowl. You can draw your own bowl or print out the empty one I drew for you.
Create a haunted house
Sketch a haunted house! What can you add to make it spooky? Maybe spider webs, bats, pumpkins, or twisty trees?
Design a Calavera
There are so many designs you can add to a calavera, or sugar skull. Draw your own and fill it in or download and use the empty one I drew.
Draw a spider
Add a spider to the web - design it however you like, you could make it realistic or add shapes and patterns to make it your own.
Design some rainboots
Draw your own pair of boots with a fun design or download the boots I drew and make them your own!
Monster Pals
Sketch some silly feet and then add monster bodies to them. Create your own or you can download the feet I drew and add to them!
Fruit/Veggie stand
Sketch what someone might find at your dream fruit/veggie stand - draw your own display or download and use the empty fruit stand I drew.
Snails need shells
Brainstorm some things that are circle shaped and draw that as a shell for a snail. Download my page of snail bodies and you can just worry about adding the shell!
Butterflies
Sketch a butterfly outline (or use the one I drew) and fill it in with your down designs! Gather little trinkets from around your house if you need ideas.
Favorite animal + favorite food
First draw your favorite animal, next draw your favorite food and then think of a way to combine them together, anything goes!
Nature Houses
Gather some objects from outside, sketch those items, and then turn them into little houses.
What's on the branch?
Imagine what might be sitting on a branch outside your home - maybe its a creature, an animal, or a toy; anything goes!