Drawing Exercises: Boost Your Skills with Simple Practice Techniques

Looking to improve your drawing skills? Drawing exercises are a great way to build confidence, sharpen technique, and spark creativity. Regular practice with focused exercises can transform your abilities, whether you’re a beginner or looking to take your art to the next level. Here, we’ll explore five effective drawing exercises and how Simply Draw can support your journey with guided, step-by-step tutorials.

1. Warm Up with Lines and Circles

Starting your drawing session with basic lines and circles may seem simple, but it’s a powerful way to warm up. Use this exercise to loosen up your hand and improve control. Try filling a page with straight lines, curved lines, and circles of different sizes and spacing. This exercise builds muscle memory, so your lines become smoother and more confident over time.

2. Contour Drawing

Contour drawing involves creating the outline of a subject without lifting your pen or pencil. This technique helps you focus on shape and proportion, training your eye to capture a subject’s overall structure. Contour drawing is particularly helpful for drawing faces, hands, or natural objects. Simply Draw includes tutorials that teach the basics of contouring through easy-to-follow subjects, so you can practice this technique with guidance.

3. Shading Practice

Shading adds depth to your artwork, making it look three-dimensional. Practice shading by drawing a simple shape, like a sphere or cube, and adding shadows and highlights. Experiment with light and dark tones, observing how they affect the illusion of form. Shading exercises are perfect for beginners, and Simply Draw’s tutorials will show you exactly where to add shadows for a realistic effect.

4. Gesture Drawing

Gesture drawing is all about capturing movement and energy. Set a timer for 30–60 seconds and draw quick, flowing sketches of people or animals. Don’t worry about details; instead, focus on capturing the essence of the pose. This is an excellent exercise for improving your speed and learning to draw fluidly. You can find a range of character tutorials in Simply Draw to practice gestures with step-by-step guidance.

5. Negative Space Drawing

Negative space drawing focuses on the space around a subject rather than the subject itself. This exercise strengthens your observation skills, helping you see shapes and proportions in a fresh way. Try drawing an object by focusing only on its surrounding shapes, like the area around the handle of a mug. Simply Draw’s tutorials break down objects into manageable steps, making it easier to grasp the concept of negative space.

Why Simply Draw is Perfect for Practicing Drawing Exercises

If you’re looking for extra guidance, Simply Draw offers a range of step-by-step tutorials that complement your drawing exercises. With tutorials on various subjects—such as animals, nature, and characters—Simply Draw helps you build your skills gradually. The app is beginner-friendly, ad-free, and perfect for practicing at your own pace.

Start Your Drawing Practice Today

With these drawing exercises, you can boost your skills and improve your confidence. Remember, practice is the key to progress, so make time each day for a few drawing exercises. And if you’re ready for a little extra support, download Simply Draw to access hundreds of tutorials designed to help you grow as an artist.