17 Main Types of Drawing: A Guide to Techniques & Styles (2025 Update)

Finding your artistic voice is a long but fundamental process that requires work. And experimenting with different drawing s is a surefire way to quicken that process!

In this articleyou’ll discover the different types of drawingexplore various drawing s like AnamorphicCaricatureand Architecturaland understand key techniques such as Stippling and Scumbling!

Whether you’re just starting your artistic journey or a seasoned artist looking for a changethere is a different type of drawing for you to try in this list.

From cartoon s to photorealism and graffitifind popular drawing s to explore in your artwork below!

17 Types Of Drawing Styles To Try

With such a big list of types of drawingI recommend you to pick one of these at random and try them out!

You can also pick a popular drawing and then go for the other s later.

But before we get into thatthere are several different mediums you can use for each .

Some specific art mediums for each drawing are:

• Charcoal Drawing
• Pencil Drawing
• Crayon Drawing
• Pastel Drawing
• Ink Drawing
• Chalk Drawing
• Embroidery Drawing
• Digital Drawing (with drawing tablets and software)

Nowlet’s go to the list!

Doodling

For spontaneous artists that like to work thoughtlesslythe doodling drawing is a great fit!

While usually done with pens and pencilsdoodling can be done with any medium. From markers to paint and digital softwareanything works.

This creative drawing unleashes an artist’s creativity and expression. It’s usually considered very simple and informalbut some artists have taken this to a professional level!

Other artists tend to use doodling as a tool to create rough drafts of ideasjust like when doing some thumbnail drawing. And then pick one to develop further into a finished drawing.

You can also use doodling to relax and explore different s of drawingso don’t forget to try this one!

Line Drawing

A line drawing is a thatas the name mentionsfocuses on drawing lines to represent the entire subject!

Even though a line can seem a simplistic approach to drawingyou can create depth and lots of detail in the art piece!

Not only thatbut you can do it in a more realistic or more stylizedtotally up to each artist’s taste. You can even include contour drawing in this it can be quite fun.

Most line drawings are done in a continuous line drawing mannerbut you can do it separately with different horizontalverticaland curved lines.

This very expressive drawing focuses on creating line drawings with different line weightsspacingand directions. So it’s a more complex than you might think.

StillI highly recommend you give it a goeven if just for fun!

Photorealism

If you’re a fan of drawing subjects as close as possible to their referencea photorealism or hyperrealism drawing is the choice for you!

This type of drawing focuses on creating a highly detailedrealistic drawingusually as detailed as its photographic reference!

These can be done with any kind of traditional or digital mediarequiring a lot of patience and skill.

If you’re considering trying this drawing I recommend you be patient and don’t expect to get everything correct right away.

This is one of those drawing s that takes many days or even weeks to get a single artwork published.

Cartoon Drawing Style

The cartoon drawing can be considered a very simplified way of drawing and painting.

It usually has characters and environments drawn with very simple geometric shapesusing bold lines to show a clear graphic .

With that saidthere are many cartoon s nowadays! So click here to check a thorough list of cartoon drawing s with examples.

Another characteristic of a cartoon drawing of a characteris that it tends to have exaggerated featuressuch as big eyes or elongated limbs in some cases!

This can be a very fun drawing to trywith so many options to pick from. So choose one and give it a go!

Architectural Drawing

Often used in architecture and designthe architectural drawing represents the scale and relationship between elements in a very diagrammatic way!

This is usually a very detailed and technical drawing that tends to be used mostly as a tool for construction and design.

With that saidseveral artists have taken this drawing for their own and showcase it as an art portfolio piece!

One interesting thing about this drawing is that it sometimes includes other elements. For examplesmall annotations with the dimensions usedsince this is meant to be used as a technical drawing!

You require a good knowledge of perspective drawing to get into architectural drawingthough. So here are some articles on One-Point Perspective Drawingand another one on Two-Point Perspective Drawing to get you started!

Typography Drawing

If you’re a fan of letteringtextand fontsthe typography drawing is a good match for you!

This drawing focuses on creating pleasing andat the same timereadableartwork. It’s mostly used to create decorative lettering or more technical fonts and typefaces.

You can usually find typographic drawings on branding and advertisingbut many artists use this purely for creating appealing art!

Consider this drawing if you’re looking for a more technical approach to artbut not as technical as architectural drawing or diagrammatic drawing.

Stippling Drawing

For very patient artistsstippling is a great choice of drawing !

Stippling involves drawing a series of small dots very close to each other to create texturedepthand shading.

By varying the distance and size between each dotyou create artwork that can be either more realistic or stylized. This is a very time-consuming processso you’ll need a lot of patience.

Not only thatbut it also requires a high level of precision. So if you have shaky hands like methis can be a tough match!

And while this can create a wide range of valuesit’s usually done with only black colored pencils or pens.

If you’re looking for something similar but with colorcheck out the Pointillism drawing below!

Pointillism (With Color)

Similar to stipplingpointillism uses a series of closely spaced dots to create a piece of art!

The biggest difference between stippling and pointillism is that while stippling uses black and white mediapointillism tends to use at least one color in the artwork.

Not only thatbut pointillism is often used to create more expressive artwhile stippling tends to be used for realistic representations.

This is a very rewarding drawing you just need to have the patience and precision that it requires!

Tattoo Drawing Style

A tattoo drawing tends to have bold lines and very elaborate patterns. With that saidwith so many different tattoo artists aroundeach will have their unique drawing !

A tattoo artist will use their original tattoo drawing (usually done on a detailed canvas) to reproduce it onto the skin of a paying customer.

There are also tattoo artists who specialize in just creating the artwork and then letting another “tattooer” apply the art to the skin.

These drawings or designs are usually decorativebut they can also have different meanings for each person. So if you’re up for a challengeand even consider using a needle to tattoo someonedo try this art !

Diagrammatic Drawing

For a more concise and symbolic drawing consider giving the diagrammatic drawing a go!

Normally used in engineering and sciencethese diagrammatic drawings showcase complex ideas in a simple way.

These drawings (usually) include different design elements. Such as lineslabelsannotations and shapesto convey the information the drawing requires! Very much like the architectural drawing .

You can also see diagrammatic drawings next to graphs and charts to help people understand the subject fully.

Geometric Drawing

Using geometric shapes and formsthe geometric drawing is mainly used in the design and architectural fields.

There’s no restriction on tools and media used in this drawing ! Nowadaysthe easiest and fastest way is to use good drawing software.

But you can also use pencilspensand markersfor example.

If you’re a fan of drawing geometric shapes such as circlestrianglesconesand cylindersthen the geometric drawing is a good choice for you!

Anamorphic Drawing

If you’ve seen those drawings with a 3d effect that gives an illusion of depththat’s an anamorphic drawing!

These drawings usually appear distorted from certain perspectives and angles, creating visual illusions and challenging your mind.

An anamorphic drawing can be quite creativeand its distortions are usually created with a mix of foreshorteningscalingand perspective drawing techniques.

If you’re looking to challenge your drawing skillsgive anamorphic drawing a try!

Hatching Drawing

Especially useful when shading a drawinghatching is a drawing and technique where an artist draws a series of lines parallel to each other to create texture and depth!

This technique takes quite some time to do correctlyas well as a lot of concentration and patience! But it can be highly satisfying to do.

Usuallyhatching is done with other techniques such as stippling (which we mentioned above)and cross-hatchingwhich is similar to hatching but with crossing lines.

Consider trying this type of drawing out if you’re looking for a new way to work on shading and depth in your artwork!

Scumbling Drawing

The scumbling drawing is another unique using quick scribbly lines and circles!

The drawings created in this are usually of a realistic naturelooking to mimic a specific photo reference or subject. But you can also use scumbling to doodle and scribble random ideas!

If you enjoy line drawingdo try scumbling for an expressive and spontaneous way of drawing. This will also improve your drawing skills and help you relax.

Fashion Drawing

Specifically designed for artists looking to get into the fashion industrythe fashion drawing is very stylized and has a wide range of elements to draw!

From general clothing and dresses to pursesbootsand even hairsfashion artists need to learn a LOT to create a good fashion drawing .

This is a very useful tool for fashion designersso do give it a try!

I do recommend you learn figure drawing before diving into fashion drawingthough.

Figure drawing will give you the bases you needwith interesting poses to use for your fashion drawing ! You can take my complete course on Figure Drawing here to make this process faster and easier.

Caricature Drawing

The caricature drawing focuses on using exaggeration to make a funny image of (usually) a person!

This caricature can be done with the usual drawing tools by traditional artistssuch as a pencil and penbut there are also many digital artists doing caricature drawing nowadays!

With the help of drawing softwareyou can easily distort specific features of an image or photomaking it easier to create exaggeration.

And this doesn’t only apply to people. Animals such as dogs and cats can also be caricatured!

You can usually find many caricatures of famous people and politicians online for inspiration.

And if you’re looking to practice your caricature drawing skillshere are the best Portrait Reference Photo Websites for you!

Graffiti Drawing

Commonly used for street artthe graffiti drawing is a very bold and colorful usually done with spray paint on public surfaces.

These graffitis are usually done as a social commentary and criticismbut it can also be done as a plain art form to showcase a graffiti artist’s work!

While it started during the 1970s with spray paint and markersit can be seen in all kinds of media nowadays!

From brushes and pencilto digital drawing and brushesyou’ll see graffiti drawings on all sorts of tools and canvases.

While this drawing has been considered vandalism by some people in the pastit has become more accepted nowadays. You can find graffiti in advertisingillustrationand much more!

Related Questions

I hope these types of drawing s have been helpful in getting your creative juices flowing and your motivation up!

Here are a few more related questions about drawing s.

What Defines a Drawing Style?

Think of a drawing as an artist’s unique artistic personality shining through their work!

It’s the consistent and distinctive way they use visual “ingredients”.

• The quality of their lines (are they bold and graphicsoft and sketchyor delicate and precise?)
• Their shading techniques (smooth blendingcrisp cross-hatchingdramatic cel-shading?)
• Their approach to form and proportion (realisticstylizedexaggeratedor minimalist?)
• And even their typical color palette or handling of values (if color isn’t used).

It’s this unique combination of choices and habits that creates a recognizable “look and feel,” instantly identifying an artist’s work and conveying their personal artistic voice.

Essentiallyit’s the special “how” behind their art that makes it uniquely theirs!

How Can Artists Develop Their Unique Drawing Style?

Developing a unique drawing takes time and focus. This process involves a lot of experimentationso don’t rush it!

With that saidthere are a few tips to help quicken this process of developing a unique drawing :

• Study your favorite artists. Make a list of the artists you love and save their work for reference. (noit isn’t cheating!) Understand why they’ve drawn the way they didand how you can learn from their artwork and .
• Try new tools. Some art s are better done with different tools. So experiment a lot with new tools and techniques! Here’s a list of the best art materials for you to try.
• Set up a schedule and practice regularly. Consistent practice will help you improve MUCH faster. So set up a schedule and reserve time to practice your each day.
• Work on your line quality. Don’t keep your work messy unless it’s a particular you’re going for! Practice drawing your lines with different weights and textures until you find something you like. This will also make your artwork look more confident.

These are just a few tipsbut they’ll help you develop your own unique drawing much faster!

Remember that you do have to know your basessuch as gesture drawing and figure drawingif you’re planning on drawing the human body in any though!

Can Artists Combine Elements From Different Drawing Styles?

One of the most common ways of coming up with new drawing s is by combining elements from different s!

For examplea cartoon artist might use some realistic features in their drawings to make their more unique! You can even pick some anime art s to mix with others.

Howeveralways remember that there should be a balance when combining those drawing s.

I recommend you push the elements as much as possible and then dial back until you find a middle ground that works for you!

How Long Does It Take To Find Your Art Style?

As I’ve mentionedfinding your art is a long process! So it will depend on each artist.

Many artists mentioned they took anywhere from 4 to 6 years to find their art . While others only mentioned that it took them up to 60 good pieces of finished artwork.

You can read more about how long it takes and a few tips on finding your own art here!

And for more scheck out this list of 13 Types Of Illustration Styles to try today!