Annika Marthinuss

My high school art teacher had a ton of awesome lists of sketchbook ideas that we used for inspiration. I loved those lists so much that I wanted to come up with my own lists for my students. A lot of the ideas came from different drawing exercises I did during college and from looking back at old sketchbooks and different techniques/themes I used, and also from looking at other peoples’ sketchbooks on Pinterest or in books (The Sketchbook Project).

A MASSIVE LIST OF SKETCHBOOK IDEAS

DRAWING AND PAINTING FROM OBSERVATION

1. Fabric – drape a piece of fabric/clothing over a chair. Shine light onto it and draw the folds and wrinkles. Or draw a pillow
2. Crumpled paper, origami, tissue paper, tissues, wrapping paper, brown paper bag
3. Trash, the contents of a trash can, recycling bin, the trash bin by the curb waiting to be picked up
4. Powerlines, electrical towers, electrical outlets, fire hydrants
5. Accessories – sunglasses, glasses, earrings, necklaces, rings, jewelry
6. Things you wear – your favorite shirt, clothes, shoes
7. Draw objects that mean something to you (stuffed animals, family heirlooms, cultural objects, etc.)
8. Food – Illustrate your favorite family recipe, draw your breakfast, lunch, dinner
9. Still life – set up a bowl of fruit, a vase of flowers, houseplants, etc.
10. Anatomical Illustrations – look at Da Vinci’s sketchbooks, anatomy textbooks, and models of the human structure and draw
11. Natural forms – Make detailed observations/ botanical illustrations of flowers, plants, trees, tree bark, pinecones, leaves, acorns, shells, mushrooms, lichen, moss, etc.
12. Insects – bugs, beetles, spiders, butterflies, caterpillars
13. Animals outside your window – deer, squirrels, birds
14. Technology – study and draw the inside of your phone, computer, a motherboard, your calculator
15. Old Electronics – televisions, radios, walkie talkies, old cameras, cassette tapes
16. Doors, windows, houses, neighborhoods, stairways/steps, ladders
17. Interior spaces – draw your room, the inside of your closet, the art classroom, the inside of your car, the bathroom, the kitchen, the hallway
18. Dishes in the sink, the inside of the fridge or pantry
19. Inside of your backpack, purse
20. Dump out the contents of your backpack/purse/bag and draw each object
21. Things in your bathroom – hairbrushes/combs, shampoo bottles, soap, deodorant, makeup, nail clippers, hair curler/straightener
22. Things on your desk – draw your desk from observation with all the objects on top of it
23. Things in the kitchen – pots, pans, tea kettle, dishes, cups
24. Art supplies – brushes, pens, scissors, paint tubes
25. Open drawer – Draw the inside of a drawer from your desk, the kitchen, bathroom, garage, etc.
26. Tools – hammers, nails, screwdrivers, saws, pliers, safety glasses
27. Pets – draw your pet (cat, dog, lizard, pet rock, etc.) from observation
28. Reflections in water, shiny objects, metal
29. Draw a small object really large, or a large object really small
30. Zoom in – draw a fruit, plant, food, technology object (motherboard, wires) up close. Use a magnifying glass to observe the object even closer and to help you see all the details
31. Zoom out – Draw an object that is really far away (at the end of a road, looking down from a tall building, etc.)
32. Look up – draw the ceiling, the open sky with the clouds, looking up from under a tree
33. Draw the sky at different times of the day, label the time
34. Monochromatic Drawing – collect objects that are the same color and paint/draw them in using colored pencils, pastels, chalk, watercolor, tempera, acrylic, etc.

PEOPLE/FIGURES

35. Draw yourself from the first mirror you can find
36. Look down and draw your entire body, without looking in a mirror (it will be a headless self-portrait)
37. Draw your face in different expressions – smiling, frowny, wrinkling your brow, with your tongue out, etc.
38. Draw yourself upon first waking up
39. Draw yourself in a mirror, include all the background space and objects (put the mirror somewhere interesting)
40. Draw your friends, family members, siblings, teachers
41. Draw your classmates during another class, people at their desks
42. Draw your hands holding objects – pencils, keys, food, etc.
43. Draw your feet with socks, shoes, or without socks
44. Do gesture drawings of athletes at a football, soccer, ice hockey, or baseball game
45. Draw the inside of your mouth (try drawing it from observation without a reference image, it’s more challenging!)
46. Facial features – Practice drawing your eyes, nose, mouth, ears, hair, etc. using different materials/ techniques

FROM IMAGINATION AND MEMORY

47. Illustrate a dream you had. Keep a dream log in your sketchbook for ideas
48. Read a fairy tale, myth, or book. Illustrate what you think the characters or scenes would look like
49. What does the inside of your mind look like?
50. Surrealism – Combine a landscape with an interior space or change the scale of an object and put it somewhere unexpected
51. Inanimate objects as living objects
52. Think about a place you haven’t been to in a while. Try to remember what was in the space (furniture? People?) – try to draw the space from only your memory, using no reference photos
53. Think about a place that no longer exists (an old swing-set in your backyard, woods that were cut down, etc.), try to draw this place from your memory, make up details you can’t remember
54. Nostalgia – draw moments that you think back on fondly, draw from old childhood photographs, old home videos, etc.
55. Divide the page up into several boxes (they can be carefully measured out and drawn with a ruler, or messier and more sporadic). In each box, draw a moment from your day (sort of a visual journal/ record of your day). Write down your thoughts if you want.

EXPERIMENT!!

56. New material – using a material you’re not as familiar with, try out different strokes, techniques, patterns, drawings, swatches
57. Mixing colors – make a color scale, take notes on which colors were mixed together, group colors that look visually appealing together
58. Plastic bag monoprint – paint on a plastic bag with watercolor, tempera, or acrylic paint. Scratch lines into the paint with the back of the brush, and print it onto the page
59. Fruit/ vegetable monoprint – cut a fruit or veggie in half, ink it, and print it onto your page. Experiment with other objects that you think would make a nice print
60. Collagraph – Cut out a piece of cardboard the same size as your sketchbook page (or smaller). Glue felt, buttons, pipecleaners, foam pieces, etc. onto the cardboard. You can also use hot glue or Elmer’s glue to make designs. Once everything is dry, roll the cardboard plate with ink and print the design into your sketchbook. Draw on top if you want.
61. Leave a page of your sketchbook outside, keeping it in place with some rocks, and see what happens to it (how will rain, dirt, weather, etc. affect it?). Then, paste it back into your sketchbook and draw on top of it
62. Mood Drawing – make a page related to an emotion/feeling (happiness, sadness, loneliness, joy, anger, etc.). Consider how colors and subject matter affect mood.
63. Nonobjective art – completely fill the page with shapes, dots, colors, patterns
64. Doodles – make a page of doodles, sketches, and ideas that you jot down during free time
65. Automatic drawing – make a drawing in your pocket as you’re walking somewhere, close your eyes and draw, draw while listening to music paying attention only to the music

DIFFERENT WAYS OF DRAWING

66. Draw something, then flip your sketchbook upside down. Draw something else on top of your first drawing, use a different color/material if you want, or let the drawings blend together.
67. 3D Drawing – Using markers or colored pencils, find 2 colors (red and green or red and blue work well) and draw something, then draw the same thing on top shifted slightly to the right or left. If you have 3D glasses, see what the drawing looks like while wearing them
68. Composite Drawing – Draw a three-dimensional object from one view in one color, then turn the object to a different view and draw it using a different color. Repeat as many times as you want.
69. Layering – Take several pieces of parchment paper and draw something on each paper. Layer the drawings on top of each other, experimenting with order, and paste them into your sketchbook
70. Draw something using only your nondominant hand.
71. Attach your drawing material (pencil, charcoal, etc.) to a long stick. Hold the stick from the farthest end, and try drawing
72. String art – draw an object/ scene using string/yarn. Apply glue to the page and follow the lines with the string/yarn.
73. Draw something 4 or more times, each time using a different material/medium/color/technique
74. Mark-making – Try making marks by dipping forks, sticks, toothbrushes, string, etc. into ink/paint and drawing with them

DISTORTION AND ABSTRACTION

75. Take a photo of something using a fish eyes lens and draw it
76. Observe an object, draw it realistically and then in different stages of abstraction
77. Find an object with an interesting shadow. Draw/paint the shadow only, making sure to pay attention to subtle shifts in color & value
78. Place an object in a clear container filled with water. Move the water around so it distorts the object. Draw it

DESIGNS

79. Typography – Create your own letters from A-Z. Name your typography alphabet based on the mood/ feel of the letters
80. Sketch out a pattern. Transfer the pattern to wrapping paper, fabric, wood, etc.
81. Using an Xacto knife, cut out a design into the whole page
82. Zentangle
83. Create a stamp or stencil and apply on the page
84. Make a collage based on a theme – fashion, nature, technology, etc.
85. Find an image from a magazine with interesting colors. Make color swatches below the image of the main colors. On the next page, make your own drawing/painting using the colors you found.
86. Cut out pieces of similar colors from a magazine to create a pattern/mandala/design
87. Make a 3D/ anamorphic drawing
88. An idea for a new product, design, clothing/fashion, fashion illustration

GO SOMEWHERE! DRAWING AT PLACES

89. Go to a museum/ gallery and sketch the sculptures, people, galleries, artworks
90. Go to the park, do gesture drawings of people, draw the ducks, the lake, the trees
91. Go to the zoo – draw the animals, the people, the habitats
92. Go to a local figure drawing session and draw from models
93. Go to the mall – sit down somewhere quiet and sketch the people passing by or the interior structure/architecture of the mall
94. While you’re at Starbucks or grabbing coffee/lunch, sketch your food/drink, the people in the café
95. Go to a city, draw the buildings, people, traffic, cars, construction sites
96. When you’re on a family vacation, paint/ draw where you go (beach, mountains, city, etc.), draw while on a hike
97. Traveling – while you’re in the car, plane, bus, etc. – draw what you see outside the window or the inside of the vehicle

RESEARCH

98. Research an artist. Paste in pictures of the artist’s work and take notes. Study the artist’s work and make some sketches practicing similar techniques to the artist or sketches inspired by their work
99. Art History – make a timeline of art history, include fun facts, images, key artists
100. Art Movement/Period – find an art movement/period that interests you. Research it further, take notes and make sketches about the artists and information about the movement/period

BACKGROUNDS/ STARTING A DRAWING – Draw or paint on top of these initial layers

1. Use leftover paint from another project to apply background color to a page.
2. Drip watercolor or ink onto the page. Once dry, try to draw or paint something using the shapes left on the page.
3. Paste in pieces of tissue paper, overlapping to blend colors if you want
4. Scratchboard – apply colors using oil pastels or crayons, then add a thick layer of black oil pastel on top. Scratch into the page to create a drawing/ design
5. Paste in a photo you have or an image from a magazine and draw the rest of the scene/ complete the drawing
6. Apply a wash of watercolor to the negative space of a drawing
7. Take notes of observations, feelings, ideas, thoughts, etc. and incorporate them into the drawing or somewhere on the page
8. Paint the page black. Draw over it with white pencils/charcoal, white oil pastel, or use it as a base for a painting
9. Tone the page – apply a layer of charcoal, chalk pastel, or pencil to the page and soften with a paper towel
10. Reductive Drawing – apply a layer of charcoal (it can be a light layer or a thick dark layer). Erase into the page to create the drawing. Add in more charcoal as needed or to draw in details.
11. Write over the entire page. Draw or paint on top
12. Paste/ collage in old class notes, pages from planners, or pages from other sketchbooks and draw/paint on top
13. Paste in old photographs or photocopied photos you have and draw/paint on top of them
14. Paste in an old map and draw/ paint on top
15. Paste in dried leaves, flowers, plants and draw around them/ on top
16. Paste in old ticket stubs, brochures, letters, stamps, etc. and draw around/ on top them
17. Stitch into the page, incorporate these marks into your drawing
18. Put your sketchbook under a plant or something else with a distinct shadow, and trace/ color the shadow onto your page. Draw/ paint on top
19. Weave cardboard, magazine pages, or scrap pages together and draw/ paint on top
20. Paste in fabric, magazine pieces, thread, yarn, parchment paper, etc. and draw on top
21. Add flaps or extra pieces of paper that fold/ pop out of the sketchbook
22. If you know how to knit or crochet, make a small swatch and paste it into your sketchbook. Paint on top of it
23. Draw something on a separate piece of paper. Tear it into strips or pieces and paste into your sketchbook. Paint on top.
24. Tape off sections of the page. Paint over the tape with watercolor then peel off
25. Wrap aluminum foil over a thin piece of cardboard. Use a dull pencil to scratch designs into the foil, paste into your sketchbook
26. Paint watercolor wash onto a page and apply crumpled plastic wrap to the page, letting it dry then peeling it off to create texture
27. Watercolor wash with kosher salt sprinkled on top
28. Splatter and drip paint onto the page
29. Use a sponge to create texture
30. Apply a layer of tempera or acrylic as a base, then scratch designs into it with the back of the brush
31. Sprinkle sand, dirt, charcoal powder into glue or paint and apply to the page
32. Stain the page with tea or coffee

Sketchbook Ideas Handouts: