201 sketchbook ideas

Sketchbook Ideas

sketchbook ideas that haven’t been sorted or added…they are NOT in the sketchbook sets

 Draw the reflection from light bouncing off a motorcycle
 Draw your portrait from the reflection of a shiny chrome object ie toaster, bowl, spoon
 Draw the reflection from a body of water
 Draw the reflection from a store window
 Draw the reflection of reflection
 Reflect on your drawing of reflection, draw your retrospection
 Draw an aerial view of your back yard
 Draw a transparent object
 Draw a translucent object
 Draw a translucent object that is inside a transparent object
 Draw a translucent apple, pear, and banana
 Draw a building in which you would like to live
 Make a drawing using a map of the USA as a motif
 Make a portrait of yourself as you see yourself in twenty years
 Make a pastoral drawing
 Draw life in the city

 Drape a mysterious object in cloth, draw it
 Draw a moving object
 Draw an empty room, make it interesting
 Draw a woman wearing a big hat
 Draw a masked man (not a super hero)
 Draw a sleeping person
 Draw a flower, make it appear dangerous
 Draw a person looking out a window
 Draw a person looking in a window
 Draw a person reading a letter
 Draw an apple, pear, and banana in outer space
 Draw a detailed drawing of a nut and bolt
 Draw a vase and a beautiful arrangement of flowers
 Draw a picture of the inside of your stomach and the food in it after a big meal
 Draw your idea of Paradise
 Draw a picture of someone you would like to kiss (your boyfriend/girlfriend, a baby, your cat, etc)
 If animals could draw, what would their artwork look like? Draw their artwork
 Why are people afraid to visit cemeteries at night? Draw it
 Draw a necktie and design an interesting pattern on it
 Draw a medal for yourself It must be designed for the thing you do best
 Draw a city on another planet
 You are a toy designer; draw your new toy
 Draw a logo for a tv show
 Draw a picture of yourself the way you will look  years from now
 Draw a picture of the perfect garden for your house
 Draw a scene from your early childhood
 Draw a parade
 Draw your greatest fear
 Draw a picture of where you would like to fly to
 Draw a poster to advertise your favorite movie
 Draw a construction site
 Draw your view from an airplane window
 Draw a scene on another planet and include another kind of being
 Draw a picture of an ideal wedding ceremony
 Draw a picture of someone you would like to visit
 Draw what you think a garden would look like from the view of an insect
 Draw a sandcastle
 Draw a house built underground
 Draw what a spaceship commander would see on his video screen
 Draw a view under a magnifying glass (include the magnifying glass)
 Draw the boat you would like to travel in around the world
 Draw a scientist’s top secret project
 Draw a new piece of sculpture for the museum’s sculpture garden
 Draw a picture of yourself if you grew flowers instead of hair
 An imaginative architect has changed the look of the skyline with an innovative new building; draw the building
 Draw a modern house which would still look good in a neighborhood with older houses
 Draw an idea that came into your head by thinking of food
 Draw an idea that came into your head through your ears
 Draw an idea that came into your head through your fingers
 Draw an idea that came into your head through your feet
 Take any one of the ideas you have already drawn and revise it – – redesign it
 Write a large number in the middle of a page Turn it into a person/animal
 Make a design using your address
 Combine a plant and an animal to create a new life form
 Add a machine to a shape (square, circle, etc) to create a new invention
 Draw a picture Cut your pictures into squares Paste the squares into a new design
 Draw a picture Fold your picture into a fan Cut little shapes out of the fan (like cutting snowflakes) Open the picture up and glue onto a second sheet

Sketchbook Ideas Set 7

drawing that oozes
drawing of a mechanical structure or machine
a machine that oozes
Make a drawing of a machine so that the parts are sticky
a famous Bridge
a famous bridge over a small body of water such as a bathtub
a chair
Draw the concept of the uses of a chair (sitting) without the chair
a table
Draw the concept of the uses of a table (eating, playing cards) without the table.
Make a drawing that illustrates the phrase “I have come to a juncture in my life.” Look up the definition of the word juncture.
Make a drawing that illustrates the phrase “There is an insufficiency of intellect”
Make a careful drawing that illustrates the word “Haste”
Draw the imaginary skeleton of an apple, pear, banana or other object that obviously doesn’t have a skeleton.
Draw a portrait of you and your friends as cards; the queen, king, and jack of spades
Make a drawing of all your drawing materials
Make a drawing while at McDonalds
Draw a mysterious doorway or staircase
Make a portrait of yourself as you see yourself in twenty years

Sketchbook Ideas Set 6

Illustrate a famous saying/quotation
yourself in a specific mood, try to communicate that mood in any way possible
things with a flavor
your greatest fear
things that close
Illustrate “the way things were”
the world from the point of view of a frog/toad
your own game board
a “how to” poster
Draw yourself with wings
a comic strip with your own characters
your dream room
Design an advertisement for yourself
Design a new license plate for the State of your choice
Illustrate words such as up, upside down, apart, crazy, sane
Design new methods of transportation
Design an ad for your favorite music
Design a new map
Create an imaginary alphabet
things that come from eggs
Design a costume
old-fashioned puppets
Illustrate: If you were the tallest person in the world
a lost dog poster
the trail of an imaginary insect
What it would look like around you if you were the last person on earth

Sketchbook Ideas Set 5

yourself dressed in clothing from the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, or 80’s
your birthday wish list
an illuminated letter for your best friend
yourself in the style of your favorite artist
your “dream car”
a “fantasy” house
a bubble and all its whirly reflective surface
a close up and enlarged leaf
the sky
a mirror and all it reflects
A different reflective surface and all it reflects (such as a bumper, water, spoon, glasses)
your favorite animal with a human face
yourself as a robot
your favorite song
your favorite photgraph
favorite person (from life)
What Frankenstein Wears For Halloween
My Greatest Fear
Things That Float
Things With Wheels
a pet drawn from a photo
a pet drawn from life
A creature emerging from an egg
An egg yoke falling out of a cracked egg
Alien Bugs
At The Beach
My Dream Car
What I See Out My Bedroom Window
I Am Screaming
An Invention Of My Own
If I Lived In The Jungle
If I Ran The Zoo
When I Close My Eyes
A Bird’s Eye View
What My Dog Dreams
I’m A Famous Rock Star

Sketchbook Set 4

Make a drawing that is completely impossible
Draw a portrait inside out
Draw an apple, pear, banana inside out
Look out your bedroom window, draw what you see
Look out your bedroom window, draw what you would like to see
Draw an apple, pear, banana that is wrapped in an apple, pear, banana
Draw a form fitting case made of steel that would fit an apple, pear, banana
Draw two squares of a sidewalk and make it look interesting
Make a detailed drawing of five square inches of grass
Make a detailed drawing of five square inches of hair
Make a detailed drawing of five square inches of  feathers
Make a detailed drawing of five square inches of a dollar bills
Draw an insect under a magnifying glass
Rearrange, redesign the insect
Draw a portrait of your best friend as an insect
Draw a self portrait of you as a beautiful insect
Draw a family insect portrait
Crumple a magazine ad, draw it
Crumple a photograph, draw it
Crumple a drawing, redraw it crumpled
Cut out a photo into small pieces, rearrange the photo in some other order, draw it

Sketchbook Ideas Set 3

A photo from another country
What Animals dream when they sleep
If I Could Fly
A detailed drawing cheeseburger with all the fixings.
a scene from a Video Game
a scene from A Garden
The Planet Zorb
Under The Big Top
The Biggest Ice Cream Sundae In The World
Things With Wings
A day in the Life Of A Bee
Deep, Deep In The Ocean
I’m Having A Bad Hair Day
Cakes, Cookies, And Pies in a bakery window
Clown School
Inside of a space ship
Look! I Found A Treasure Chest!
My Very Own Starry, Starry Night
An encounter with a Dragon
The Best Day Of My Life
Lions, & Tigers, & Bears Oh, My!
In A Crowded Elevator
A Kite Flying Contest
King Askobar And His Castle
Inside My Stomach After Lunch
The Tooth Fairy
Princess Peony And Her Pet Frog Herman
A Map Of My Neighborhood
A treasure map
a map of the school, with “real labels”
A Tree Is Home To Many Things
The Winner Of A Dog Show
A costume contest
Things We Use In Art Class
Alternative uses for things we use in Art Class
My Trip To Outer Space
If I Had Million Dollars
At The Elephant And Donkey’s Wedding
Introducing The Newest Pokemon
A Class Trip To The Park
A creativity Factory

Sources:  modified from lists found on…
sketchmindedblogspotcom (hyperlink removed)
mrspicassosartroomblogspotcom (hyperlink removed)

Sketchbook Ideas Set 2

 On the school bus, draw your friends on the way to school, draw your friends on the way home Is there a difference?
 Shine a light through an open structure such as a woven basket, draw the cast shadow
an object that is lit by the light coming through mini blinds
 a portrait that is lit by the light coming through mini blinds
an object that is lit by a candle
a figure that is lit by a candle
your sister/brother by the light cast by the TV or computer screen
your father/mother by the light cast from the TV or computer screen
an apple, pear, banana…
a partially eaten apple, banana, pear…
 Draw a scoop of ice cream, pay attention to texture and highlights.
 Tighten a C clamp on an unexpected object (like a banana) and draw it.
Draw an object with a distinctive shape that is tightly wrapped in aluminum foil or plastic wrap or string.
 Copy the Mona Lisa.
Make changes to the Mona Lisa to suit yourself
 Make changes the Mona Lisa to suit your art teacher
 Put Mona Lisa in a contemporary setting
 Copy any work of art older than you, then remake work of art in your way.
 Create a work of art that says something about the environment
 Create a work of art that says something about the world situation
Create a drawing that is pure propaganda about any issue you feel strongly about. Look up the definition of propaganda.
 something is totally truthful.
something that is a lie. 

source: modified from list at
sketchmindedblogspotcom (hyperlink removed)
mrspicassosartroomblogspotcom (hyperlink removed)

Sketchbook Ideas Set 1

Draw the inside of your closet
Draw the contents of your desk drawer
Just before your room is cleaned, draw it
Inside of your refrigerator
Inside your garage
Draw your dad’s work table
Before the dishes are washed, draw them
a pile of laundry waiting to get washed
yourself in a mirror
your brother/sister doing an activity, such as playing video games
your friend, or an enemy
yourself your toenails
your hand holding an object that is important to you.
your bird, cat, dog, fish, snake, leopard, lobster doing something strange
what is in the rear-view mirror of your car
a dead bird in a beautiful landscape
a flower growing next to a turned over garbage can
raw chicken parts; cooked parts; after eaten parts
a piece of cake and make it look delicious
eggs in the shell, scrambled, then over easy
one popcorn kernel popping, draw an opened bag of popcorn
a raw steak, steak bones
moving water, still water
a clear glass full of ice cubes
an object when looking through a tube or a microscope
an object seen through glass (how does the glass make a difference)
something floating, like a boat or a beach ball
a dark object in a light environment
a light object in a dark environment
Lie on the floor, draw what is eye level
Dig a hole, put an object in the hole, then draw the object and the hole—pay attention to shadows.
Fill in the hole, partially cover up the object, draw it emerging from the ground.
Find a quiet place in a crowd, draw the crowd
Find a quiet place, draw the quiet
Find a noisy place, draw noise

source: modified from list at
sketchmindedblogspotcom (hyperlink removed)
mrspicassosartroomblogspotcom (hyperlink removed)

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