GridGridMake

What should I draw today?

A drawing idea generator with 310 prompts written for this page. Filter by subject, difficulty, time and medium, get a new prompt every day, and draw any of them with the grid method — 9 come with a ready-made grid worksheet. Free, no signup.

Drawing idea generator

Set what you feel like drawing and how long you have, then press Another idea. The medium only changes the tip under the prompt.

Difficulty
Time

310 ideas

One a day

Today’s prompt

A new drawing prompt every day, the same for everyone who opens the page, chosen from the date rather than by a server — no account, no email. Come back tomorrow for the next one, or press Done to keep a streak on this device.

Random drawing generator or daily prompt?

Use the button above as a random drawing generator when you want choice: press Another idea until something sticks, and the last five prompts will not come round again. Use the daily prompt when choice is the problem — one idea, no browsing, and a sketchbook that fills up a page a day.

Either way, every prompt is sized to a time: 10 minutes for a warm-up, 30 for a sketch, 60 for a finished drawing. The art prompt generator never asks you to draw “a dragon” in ten minutes; it asks for a dragon in five lines.

Drawing ideas

Things to draw, by difficulty

A dozen from each level, in plain text. Pick one to load it into the generator, or use the filters above for the full list.

Easy things to draw

Big shapes, few lines, ten to thirty minutes.

  1. A cat curled up asleep, drawn as one simple oval with ears and a tail. · 10 min
  2. The mug on your desk, handle facing you. · 10 min
  3. Your non-drawing hand, relaxed, palm up. · 10 min
  4. The nearest tree, as one big shape first. · 10 min
  5. An apple with a stem and one leaf, in bold outline. · 10 min · worksheet
  6. A bicycle from the side, two circles first. · 10 min
  7. A friendly monster with one eye and a big grin. · 10 min
  8. Twenty circles that overlap, shading every overlap. · 10 min
  9. A cartoon fish blowing bubbles, with a fan tail and a row of scales. · 10 min · worksheet
  10. A single key, at actual size. · 10 min
  11. One eye, including the eyebrow and the shadow under the brow. · 10 min
  12. Three clouds, each a different type. · 10 min

Medium drawing ideas

A subject plus one thing to get right: an angle, a reflection, a texture.

  1. An owl on a branch, with two huge round eyes. · 30 min · worksheet
  2. A crumpled sheet of paper, following every crease. · 30 min
  3. A photo of a face turned upside down, copied shape by shape without naming the features. · 30 min
  4. The corner of your room, where two walls meet the floor. · 30 min
  5. A head of garlic, papery skin peeling. · 30 min
  6. A sailboat on the waves, with the sun and two birds. · 30 min · worksheet
  7. Invent a character and draw them from the front and from the side. · 30 min
  8. A four-by-four grid where every cell holds a different repeating pattern. · 30 min
  9. A turtle walking, its patterned shell made of simple hexagons. · 30 min · worksheet
  10. A glass of water with a spoon in it. · 30 min
  11. Two hands holding a cup. · 30 min
  12. A lamppost and the shadow it throws. · 30 min

Hard drawing ideas

An hour, a grid and a reference photo.

  1. A tiger’s face from the front, the stripes following the curve of the head. · 60 min
  2. A still life of fruit, a bowl and a bottle on a table, with the shading that tells you where the light comes from. · 60 min · worksheet
  3. A head-and-shoulders portrait with light from one side, the shadows following the form. · 60 min · worksheet
  4. Mountains, a lake and trees under an evening sky, with the reflections darker than the shore. · 60 min · worksheet
  5. A pomegranate broken open, seeds glistening. · 60 min
  6. A vintage car’s front grille and headlamps, with the chrome reflections. · 60 min
  7. A dragon in flight, wings like a bat’s, scales only where the light catches them. · 60 min
  8. A tiled floor in perspective, the tiles getting smaller towards the horizon. · 60 min
  9. A horse galloping, all four legs off the ground. · 60 min
  10. Three glass bottles in front of a window, drawing the light passing through them. · 60 min
  11. A hand reaching towards you, the fingers foreshortened. · 60 min
  12. A street in two-point perspective, every window in place. · 60 min

By subject

Drawing ideas by subject

Twelve from each subject, easy to hard. The generator above holds the rest.

Animals to draw

  1. A cat curled up asleep, drawn as one simple oval with ears and a tail. · 10 min
  2. An owl on a branch, with two huge round eyes. · 30 min · worksheet
  3. A tiger’s face from the front, the stripes following the curve of the head. · 60 min
  4. A cartoon fish blowing bubbles, with a fan tail and a row of scales. · 10 min · worksheet
  5. A turtle walking, its patterned shell made of simple hexagons. · 30 min · worksheet
  6. A horse galloping, all four legs off the ground. · 60 min
  7. A cat’s face from the front: two pointed ears, big eyes and six whiskers. · 10 min · worksheet
  8. A horse’s head in profile, paying attention to the angle of the jaw. · 30 min
  9. An eagle landing, wings spread wide and talons out. · 60 min
  10. A snail crossing a leaf, its shell a single loose spiral. · 10 min
  11. A cat mid-stretch, back arched, caught in three quick lines and then refined. · 30 min
  12. An elephant’s eye and the wrinkled skin around it, filling the whole page. · 60 min

Objects to draw

  1. The mug on your desk, handle facing you. · 10 min
  2. A crumpled sheet of paper, following every crease. · 30 min
  3. A still life of fruit, a bowl and a bottle on a table, with the shading that tells you where the light comes from. · 60 min · worksheet
  4. A single key, at actual size. · 10 min
  5. A glass of water with a spoon in it. · 30 min
  6. Three glass bottles in front of a window, drawing the light passing through them. · 60 min
  7. A pair of scissors, open. · 10 min
  8. A hammer and two screwdrivers laid out on a workbench. · 30 min
  9. A tea towel draped over a chair back, every fold. · 60 min
  10. One of your shoes seen from the side. · 10 min
  11. A pair of headphones with the cable in a loose coil. · 30 min
  12. A metal spoon, reflecting the room in its bowl. · 60 min

People to draw

  1. Your non-drawing hand, relaxed, palm up. · 10 min
  2. A photo of a face turned upside down, copied shape by shape without naming the features. · 30 min
  3. A head-and-shoulders portrait with light from one side, the shadows following the form. · 60 min · worksheet
  4. One eye, including the eyebrow and the shadow under the brow. · 10 min
  5. Two hands holding a cup. · 30 min
  6. A hand reaching towards you, the fingers foreshortened. · 60 min
  7. An ear — your own in a mirror, or a friend’s. · 10 min
  8. Someone looking at their phone, from the side. · 30 min
  9. A portrait of someone you know, from a photo you took, with a nine-column grid. · 60 min
  10. A person walking, as a silhouette only. · 10 min
  11. Both eyes, with the width of one eye between them. · 30 min
  12. Two figures, one handing something to the other. · 60 min

Places and nature to draw

  1. The nearest tree, as one big shape first. · 10 min
  2. The corner of your room, where two walls meet the floor. · 30 min
  3. Mountains, a lake and trees under an evening sky, with the reflections darker than the shore. · 60 min · worksheet
  4. Three clouds, each a different type. · 10 min
  5. A lamppost and the shadow it throws. · 30 min
  6. A street in two-point perspective, every window in place. · 60 min
  7. The view from your window, in ten minutes flat. · 10 min
  8. A garden gate, half open. · 30 min
  9. The front of an old building, every row of bricks suggested. · 60 min
  10. A single leaf with its veins. · 10 min
  11. A harbour wall at low tide, seaweed and rings. · 30 min
  12. Inside a forest: trunks near and far, light between them. · 60 min

Food to draw

  1. An apple with a stem and one leaf, in bold outline. · 10 min · worksheet
  2. A head of garlic, papery skin peeling. · 30 min
  3. A pomegranate broken open, seeds glistening. · 60 min
  4. A banana, with its brown spots. · 10 min
  5. A mushroom cut in half, showing the gills. · 30 min
  6. A glass of orange juice next to the orange it came from, both with their reflections. · 60 min
  7. A single egg and its shadow. · 10 min
  8. A bell pepper with its highlights, leaving the paper white for the shine. · 30 min
  9. A pineapple, every diamond of the skin. · 60 min
  10. A slice of bread, with the holes in it. · 10 min
  11. Eggs in an open carton. · 30 min
  12. A pile of vegetables at a market, overlapping, with the shadows between them. · 60 min

Vehicles to draw

  1. A bicycle from the side, two circles first. · 10 min
  2. A sailboat on the waves, with the sun and two birds. · 30 min · worksheet
  3. A vintage car’s front grille and headlamps, with the chrome reflections. · 60 min
  4. A car from the side, as a box on two circles. · 10 min
  5. A bicycle from a three-quarter angle, so the wheels become ellipses. · 30 min
  6. A sailing ship with its rigging, every rope leading somewhere. · 60 min
  7. A hot air balloon, the basket tiny. · 10 min
  8. A parked car from the front corner, the wheels as ellipses. · 30 min
  9. A steam engine from a low angle, wheels and pistons. · 60 min
  10. A rowing boat pulled up on a beach. · 10 min
  11. A motorbike from the side, the engine as a cluster of simple shapes. · 30 min
  12. A car interior from the back seat, dashboard and mirror. · 60 min

Fantasy and characters to draw

  1. A friendly monster with one eye and a big grin. · 10 min
  2. Invent a character and draw them from the front and from the side. · 30 min
  3. A dragon in flight, wings like a bat’s, scales only where the light catches them. · 60 min
  4. A robot built from boxes and cylinders. · 10 min
  5. A robot pet with one broken antenna. · 30 min
  6. A figure in full armour, each plate overlapping the next. · 60 min
  7. A dragon’s egg, half hatched. · 10 min
  8. An old tree with a face in its bark. · 30 min
  9. A forest spirit made of leaves and antlers, half transparent. · 60 min
  10. A wizard’s hat with a bent tip and a patch. · 10 min
  11. A mermaid sitting on a rock, tail in the water. · 30 min
  12. Floating islands connected by rope bridges, waterfalls falling into nothing. · 60 min

Patterns and abstract ideas

  1. Twenty circles that overlap, shading every overlap. · 10 min
  2. A four-by-four grid where every cell holds a different repeating pattern. · 30 min
  3. A tiled floor in perspective, the tiles getting smaller towards the horizon. · 60 min
  4. Fill the page with one continuous line that never crosses itself. · 10 min
  5. Straight lines that bend around a circle so it seems to bulge. · 30 min
  6. A chrome sphere reflecting a room. · 60 min
  7. A square filled with parallel lines, then a second set at an angle over the top. · 10 min
  8. A circular pattern with eight-fold symmetry, built from the centre outward. · 30 min
  9. A piece of cloth as an abstract of folds, no object visible. · 60 min
  10. A value scale: ten boxes from white to the darkest your pencil goes. · 10 min
  11. A tile design that repeats seamlessly on all four sides. · 30 min
  12. A tree where each branch splits into two smaller branches, seven levels deep. · 60 min

From idea to paper

Draw any idea with a grid

Every prompt on this page can be drawn with the grid method: grid the reference, draw the same grid lightly on your paper, and copy one square at a time.

Prompts with a worksheet (9 of them, marked “worksheet” in the lists) come as a two-page PDF: the picture on a labelled grid and a matching blank grid with a name and date line, on A4 or US Letter. Press Draw it with a grid and print it. They are the same nine pictures as the ready-made grid drawing worksheets.

Every other prompt opens the grid maker with a suggested number of columns already set — fewer for easy subjects, ten or more for portraits and detailed scenes. Add your own reference photo (or take one of the object in front of you), download the gridded picture and the matching blank grid, and draw square by square. Grid drawing ideas work best with a photo you took yourself: you know what the subject really looks like.

Drawing from imagination? Keep the grid anyway. Draw a light 6 × 8 grid on the paper and use it to place the big shapes before any detail; it stops the drawing drifting off the page.

Open the grid maker All 9 ready-made worksheets

In class and in the sketchbook

Drawing prompts for teachers and sketchbooks

The same list works as a drawing prompt generator for a classroom and as a stack of sketchbook prompts for one person.

Bell-ringers

Put the page on the board as students arrive. Today’s prompt is the same for every class that day, so first period and last period compare drawings; or set Easy and 10 minutes and press Another idea for a fresh one each lesson. Nothing to log in to, nothing to print unless you want to.

Sketchbook warm-ups

Before a longer piece, take a 10-minute prompt from the Patterns or People subjects: a value scale, twenty gesture drawings, a blind contour of your hand. They loosen the arm and reset the eye. Mark them Done and the page keeps a quiet count of your streak on this device — no account, no reminders.

Pair a prompt with a grid worksheet

For a proportion lesson, pick a prompt that carries a worksheet (the owl, the sailboat, the portrait) and print the two-page PDF for the class: everyone draws the same picture on the same grid, and the blank page already has a name line. For a differentiated set, open the same picture in the worksheet maker and change the column count, or print blank grid paper for prompts drawn from life.

FAQ

Questions about what to draw

What should I draw when I’m bored?
Set Difficulty to Easy and Time to 10 minutes, then press Another idea until one makes you reach for a pencil. Short, concrete prompts work best when you are bored: a mug, a shoe, your own hand, three birds on a wire. The aim is to start, not to finish a masterpiece — if you want more after ten minutes, press the button again.
How do I pick a prompt I can actually finish?
Filter by the time you really have, not the time you wish you had, and keep the difficulty one step below what you think you can manage. Every prompt here is a single subject or a single exercise, so it has a natural end: when the shape is on the paper, you are done. If a prompt still feels too big, draw its biggest shape first and stop there.
Can I use these prompts in class?
Yes. The page is free, there is nothing to sign in to, and the prompts are written to be read aloud. Today’s prompt is the same for everyone on a given day, so it works as a bell-ringer the whole class shares. Nine prompts come with a two-page grid worksheet PDF you can print for a class set.
How do I draw a prompt with the grid method?
Press Draw it with a grid. Prompts with a ready-made worksheet give you a PDF: the picture on a labelled grid and a matching blank grid, so you copy one square at a time. For every other prompt the button opens the grid maker with a suggested number of columns; add your own reference photo, download the gridded picture and the blank grid, and draw square by square. How the grid method works
Do you store my progress?
Only on your device. When you press Done, the prompt and the date are saved in your browser’s local storage, along with your streak. Nothing is sent to a server, there is no account, and clearing the site’s data removes it. If your browser blocks storage, the page still works; it just will not remember.
Are the ideas AI-generated?
No. Every prompt was written by a person for this page, and the library is a fixed list you can read in full below. The page only picks from that list: Another idea picks at random on your device, and Today’s prompt is chosen from the date, so no server decides anything.
Grid maker for drawing: cell size for your paper, PDF and print How the grid method works Free printable grid drawing worksheets