assignment design drawing

Browse Course Material

Course info, instructors.

• Prof. Daniel Frey
• Prof. David Gossard

Departments

• Mechanical Engineering

As Taught In

• Robotics and Control Systems
• Mechanical Design

Learning Resource Types

Design and manufacturing i, design handbook: engineering drawing and sketching.

To see an animated version of this tutorial, please see the Drawing and Drafting section in MIT’s Engineering Design Instructional Computer System. (EDICS)

Drawing Handout Index

Isometric drawing.

Orthographic or Multiview Drawings

Dimensioning

Drawing tools.

Assembly Drawings

Cross-Sectional Views

Half-sections.

Sections of Objects with Holes, Ribs, etc.

More Dimensioning

Where to Put Dimensions

Introduction

One of the best ways to communicate one’s ideas is through some form of picture or drawing. This is especially true for the engineer. The purpose of this guide is to give you the basics of engineering sketching and drawing.

We will treat “sketching” and “drawing” as one. “Sketching” generally means freehand drawing. “Drawing” usually means using drawing instruments, from compasses to computers to bring precision to the drawings.

This is just an introduction. Don’t worry about understanding every detail right now - just get a general feel for the language of graphics.

We hope you like the object in Figure 1, because you’ll be seeing a lot of it. Before we get started on any technical drawings, let’s get a good look at this strange block from several angles.

Figure 1 - A Machined Block.

The representation of the object in figure 2 is called an isometric drawing. This is one of a family of three-dimensional views called pictorial drawings. In an isometric drawing, the object’s vertical lines are drawn vertically, and the horizontal lines in the width and depth planes are shown at 30 degrees to the horizontal. When drawn under these guidelines, the lines parallel to these three axes are at their true (scale) lengths. Lines that are not parallel to these axes will not be of their true length.

Figure 2 - An Isometric Drawing.

Any engineering drawing should show everything: a complete understanding of the object should be possible from the drawing. If the isometric drawing can show all details and all dimensions on one drawing, it is ideal. One can pack a great deal of information into an isometric drawing. However, if the object in figure 2 had a hole on the back side, it would not be visible using a single isometric drawing. In order to get a more complete view of the object, an orthographic projection may be used.

Orthographic or Multiview Drawing

Imagine that you have an object suspended by transparent threads inside a glass box, as in figure 3.

Figure 3 - The block suspended in a glass box.

Then draw the object on each of three faces as seen from that direction. Unfold the box (figure 4) and you have the three views. We call this an “orthographic” or “multiview” drawing.

Figure 4 - The creation of an orthographic multiview drawing.

Figure 5 - A multiview drawing and its explanation.

Which views should one choose for a multiview drawing? The views that reveal every detail about the object. Three views are not always necessary; we need only as many views as are required to describe the object fully. For example, some objects need only two views, while others need four. The circular object in figure 6 requires only two views.

Figure 6 - An object needing only two orthogonal views.

Figure 7 - An isometric view with dimensions.

We have “dimensioned” the object in the isometric drawing in figure 7. As a general guideline to dimensioning, try to think that you would make an object and dimension it in the most useful way. Put in exactly as many dimensions as are necessary for the craftsperson to make it -no more, no less. Do not put in redundant dimensions. Not only will these clutter the drawing, but if “tolerances” or accuracy levels have been included, the redundant dimensions often lead to conflicts when the tolerance allowances can be added in different ways.

Repeatedly measuring from one point to another will lead to inaccuracies. It is often better to measure from one end to various points. This gives the dimensions a reference standard. It is helpful to choose the placement of the dimension in the order in which a machinist would create the part. This convention may take some experience.

There are many times when the interior details of an object cannot be seen from the outside (figure 8).

Figure 8 - An isometric drawing that does not show all details.

We can get around this by pretending to cut the object on a plane and showing the “sectional view”. The sectional view is applicable to objects like engine blocks, where the interior details are intricate and would be very difficult to understand through the use of “hidden” lines (hidden lines are, by convention, dotted) on an orthographic or isometric drawing.

Imagine slicing the object in the middle (figure 9):

Figure 9 - “Sectioning” an object.

Figure 10 - Sectioning the object in figure 8.

Take away the front half (figure 10) and what you have is a full section view (figure 11).

Figure 11 - Sectioned isometric and orthogonal views.

The cross-section looks like figure 11 when it is viewed from straight ahead.

To prepare a drawing, one can use manual drafting instruments (figure 12) or computer-aided drafting or design, or CAD. The basic drawing standards and conventions are the same regardless of what design tool you use to make the drawings. In learning drafting, we will approach it from the perspective of manual drafting. If the drawing is made without either instruments or CAD, it is called a freehand sketch.

Figure 12 - Drawing Tools.

"Assembly" Drawings

An isometric view of an “assembled” pillow-block bearing system is shown in figure 13. It corresponds closely to what you actually see when viewing the object from a particular angle. We cannot tell what the inside of the part looks like from this view.

We can also show isometric views of the pillow-block being taken apart or “disassembled” (figure 14). This allows you to see the inner components of the bearing system. Isometric drawings can show overall arrangement clearly, but not the details and the dimensions.

Figure 13 - Pillow-block (Freehand sketch).

Figure 14 - Disassembled Pillow-block.

A cross-sectional view portrays a cut-away portion of the object and is another way to show hidden components in a device.

Imagine a plane that cuts vertically through the center of the pillow block as shown in figure 15. Then imagine removing the material from the front of this plane, as shown in figure 16.

Figure 15 - Pillow Block.

Figure 16 - Pillow Block.

This is how the remaining rear section would look. Diagonal lines (cross-hatches) show regions where materials have been cut by the cutting plane.

Figure 17 - Section “A-A”.

This cross-sectional view (section A-A, figure 17), one that is orthogonal to the viewing direction, shows the relationships of lengths and diameters better. These drawings are easier to make than isometric drawings. Seasoned engineers can interpret orthogonal drawings without needing an isometric drawing, but this takes a bit of practice.

The top “outside” view of the bearing is shown in figure 18. It is an orthogonal (perpendicular) projection. Notice the direction of the arrows for the “A-A” cutting plane.

Figure 18 - The top “outside” view of the bearing.

A half-section is a view of an object showing one-half of the view in section, as in figure 19 and 20.

Figure 19 - Full and sectioned isometric views.

Figure 20 - Front view and half section.

The diagonal lines on the section drawing are used to indicate the area that has been theoretically cut. These lines are called section lining or cross-hatching . The lines are thin and are usually drawn at a 45-degree angle to the major outline of the object. The spacing between lines should be uniform.

A second, rarer, use of cross-hatching is to indicate the material of the object. One form of cross-hatching may be used for cast iron, another for bronze, and so forth. More usually, the type of material is indicated elsewhere on the drawing, making the use of different types of cross-hatching unnecessary.

Figure 21 - Half section without hidden lines.

Usually hidden (dotted) lines are not used on the cross-section unless they are needed for dimensioning purposes. Also, some hidden lines on the non-sectioned part of the drawings are not needed (figure 12) since they become redundant information and may clutter the drawing.

Sectioning Objects with Holes, Ribs, Etc.

The cross-section on the right of figure 22 is technically correct. However, the convention in a drawing is to show the view on the left as the preferred method for sectioning this type of object.

Figure 22 - Cross section.

The purpose of dimensioning is to provide a clear and complete description of an object. A complete set of dimensions will permit only one interpretation needed to construct the part. Dimensioning should follow these guidelines.

• Accuracy: correct values must be given.
• Clearness: dimensions must be placed in appropriate positions.
• Completeness: nothing must be left out, and nothing duplicated.
• Readability: the appropriate line quality must be used for legibility.

The Basics: Definitions and Dimensions

The dimension line is a thin line, broken in the middle to allow the placement of the dimension value, with arrowheads at each end (figure 23).

Figure 23 - Dimensioned Drawing.

An arrowhead is approximately 3 mm long and 1 mm wide. That is, the length is roughly three times the width. An extension line extends a line on the object to the dimension line. The first dimension line should be approximately 12 mm (0.6 in) from the object. Extension lines begin 1.5 mm from the object and extend 3 mm from the last dimension line.

A leader is a thin line used to connect a dimension with a particular area (figure 24).

Figure 24 - Example drawing with a leader.

A leader may also be used to indicate a note or comment about a specific area. When there is limited space, a heavy black dot may be substituted for the arrows, as in figure 23. Also in this drawing, two holes are identical, allowing the “2x” notation to be used and the dimension to point to only one of the circles.

Where To Put Dimensions

The dimensions should be placed on the face that describes the feature most clearly. Examples of appropriate and inappropriate placing of dimensions are shown in figure 25.

Figure 25 - Example of appropriate and inappropriate dimensioning.

In order to get the feel of what dimensioning is all about, we can start with a simple rectangular block. With this simple object, only three dimensions are needed to describe it completely (figure 26). There is little choice on where to put its dimensions.

Figure 26 - Simple Object.

We have to make some choices when we dimension a block with a notch or cutout (figure 27). It is usually best to dimension from a common line or surface. This can be called the datum line of surface. This eliminates the addition of measurement or machining inaccuracies that would come from “chain” or “series” dimensioning. Notice how the dimensions originate on the datum surfaces. We chose one datum surface in figure 27, and another in figure 28. As long as we are consistent, it makes no difference. (We are just showing the top view).

Figure 27 - Surface datum example.

Figure 28 - Surface datum example.

In figure 29 we have shown a hole that we have chosen to dimension on the left side of the object. The Ø stands for “diameter”.

Figure 29 - Exampled of a dimensioned hole.

When the left side of the block is “radiuses” as in figure 30, we break our rule that we should not duplicate dimensions. The total length is known because the radius of the curve on the left side is given. Then, for clarity, we add the overall length of 60 and we note that it is a reference (REF) dimension. This means that it is not really required.

Figure 30 - Example of a directly dimensioned hole.

Somewhere on the paper, usually the bottom, there should be placed information on what measuring system is being used (e.g. inches and millimeters) and also the scale of the drawing.

Figure 31 - Example of a directly dimensioned hole.

This drawing is symmetric about the horizontal centerline. Centerlines (chain-dotted) are used for symmetric objects, and also for the center of circles and holes. We can dimension directly to the centerline, as in figure 31. In some cases this method can be clearer than just dimensioning between surfaces.

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• Art + Merch

High School Drawing Curriculum: 12 Lessons

HIGH SCHOOL DRAWING

In my teaching career I have taught a wide range of high school art courses: Introduction to Art, Drawing, Painting, Advanced 2D Design, AP Art, 3D Design, 3D Design II, and 3D Design III. I have loved teaching such a variety because it has given me the opportunity to develop and test a breadth of lesson plans. The past two years I have been working on compiling my favorite lessons into curriculum packs to sell on my TPT store. The most recent posting on my store is my semester-long high school drawing curriculum pack. I have taught every single one of these lessons (plus more that I tested, failed, and left out so you don’t have to) and these are my top twelve.

This high school drawing curriculum includes information and resources to fill every single day of the semester in your drawing class. Other than making copies of worksheets and doing a handful of demos, you don’t have to plan a thing for the semester. Each project includes a detailed lesson plan (including big ideas, essential questions, national standards, vocabulary, and step-by-step instructions), rubrics, critique information, and handouts. In addition to the project packs I have included my syllabus, get-to-know-you worksheets, a timeline, breaking down the semester into days and weeks, and supply list.

12 PROJECTS

The first project of the semester is learning the Belgian bookbinding technique and using it to create your own sketchbook. This not only saves money on purchasing sketchbooks, but it also introduces the students to book cover design and bookbinding techniques. In addition to a PowerPoint, lesson plan, and rubric, this also includes a how to worksheet and how to video. This product is sold individually here .

In every class I teach I include a weekly focus on visual journals. Each Friday students have the option to work in their visual journal, have free art time, or catch up on an assignment. By the end of the semester they must have at least 12 pages completed in their book. The PowerPoint to introduce this project, lesson plan, and rubric are included in this pack.

Before the students start longer drawing projects, they complete a shading review. Seven worksheets are included that cover graphite pencils, hatching, cross-hatching, scribbling, stippling, and a general shading worksheet. The front of the worksheets include information and the students must complete the activities on the back. This product can be purchased individually here .

The first true drawing assignment is a still life drawing. However, I put a twist on it by requiring the students to bring in objects to create the still life. Before starting the drawing, the students learn about still lifes at various periods in art history. at both traditional and modern versions of still lifes. They must apply their understanding of various shading techniques by including at least three of them in their drawing. Check out the individual link for this product here .

Once the class has a few drawing projects under their belt, we look at combining technology and art by creating their own GIFs. They must draw the majority of the design, then use various computer programs to compile their drawings, add to them, then create an animated version of them. You can read more about this project in my blog post here .

Once the students have a handle on using pencils, we move onto charcoal drawings. One of the best ways I have found to teach how to shade using charcoal is through the traditional charcoal drapery drawing lesson. A PowerPoint about charcoal, in depth lesson plan, rubric, and critique are included. You can purchase this lesson individually here .

After learning about charcoal, the students apply their knowledge to a mixed media work of art that includes shading with charcoal. For this assignment, the students must select an object and redraw it on a background layered with color and text. The object is meant to serve as a metaphor for who they are, a part of their personality, or interests. I love any cross disciplinary lessons, and this does a great job combining English and art. Check out specifics of this project here .

After completing a metaphorical self portrait, the students are asked to create an actual self portrait drawing, with a twist. The students must select a current event that interests them and reflect it through their portrait. In addition, they have to scan their faces using a copier or scanner to create an unusual and ethereal look to their portrait. They then re-draw their scanned image using pencil. This project pack includes multiple PowerPoints to introduce the project and show examples of current artists who create social and politically driven artwork. In addition to the PowerPoints are an in depth lesson plan, rubric, critique sheet, and brainstorm worksheet. Check out more here .

After working mostly in black and white, students have the chance to do a full color drawing using colored pencils. They are asked to think outside of the box and take a photograph that reflects the topic, “unexpected beauty.” They then turn the photograph into a colored pencil drawing. Colored pencil techniques are covered in the introduction PowerPoint. Check out more information about it here .

After learning about colored pencils, we start moving towards different media that still use traditional drawing techniques, such as scratchboard. Social media is the focus of the lesson and students create a scratchboard image that reflects a snapshot of their day. History of scratchboard, as well as techniques, are in the PowerPoint.  In depth instructions on how to teach the lesson are included in the lesson plan, as well as the rubric and critique sheet. This lesson can be purchased individually here .

Printmaking is a natural next step after learning about scratchboard. The basic concepts are similar, removing highlighted areas and leaving dark areas. For this assignment, students create a portrait out of a linoleum block. They use traditional relief printmaking techniques to create at least 5 quality prints and one print must be colored in using colored pencils. In addition to a PowerPoint, lesson plan, rubric, and critique sheet, this also includes a handout on which colors to use to create a range of skin tones and a worksheet to test various color combinations. An in-depth look at this lesson will be coming soon. In the meantime, check out the product listing here .

The final lesson in the curriculum is to design your own project. The students can try out a technique or material they didn’t get a chance to or redo a project they liked or could improve on.

It took me years to develop this curriculum and it is very gratifying to see it all compiled in one place. Check out the individual product links above or check out the entire curriculum here . You save $16.00 by purchasing it as a bundle pack. Thanks for taking the time to check out my blog and my latest TPT product. Help me spread the word about art education, lessons, and art in general by sharing with others.

Check out more visual journal blog posts  here . Shop my education resources  here . Don’t forget to follow me on  Instagram  and  TikTok  for weekly visual journal demos. Until next time!

4 responses to “High School Drawing Curriculum: 12 Lessons”

This looks very helpful. Thank you!

You’re welcome! Reach out anytime with questions or comments!

Could I get a copy of the worksheets? [email protected]

Hi, Stacy! The worksheets can be purchased in my drawing curriculum or individually. If you want to purchase individually let me know which worksheets you are interested in and I can share links! You can look at the drawing curriculum here: https://lookbetweenthelines.com/product/visual-art-drawing-curriculum-12-lessons-for-18-weeks-of-high-school-art/

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Sketchbook Ideas

Sketchbook assignment ideas.

Current HS Sketchbook Assignment Handout :  

Sb assigns-adv hs art q3 2018-19, sb assigns-adv hs art q2 2018-19a.

SB ASSIGNS-ADV HS ART Q1 2018-19

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NEEDED Sketchbook Supplies:

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Requirements for my HS Art Sketchbook Assignments:

You must complete a minimum of 4- 5 assignments listed below in each 9-week period.

• Drawings should fill the ENTIRE sketchbook page (points will be deducted for small drawings.)
• Include DETAILS (include textures & value, unless otherwise specified.)
• Spend a minimum of 45 minutes on each assignment.
• Each sketchbook counts as a QUIZ grade!
• Sketchbooks handed in late will be accepted but 30 points removed for lateness, 2 days late will receive a “0”.
• DRAWINGS NEEDS TO BE FROM DIRECT OBSERVATION ie: you LOOKING at the objects ! That means NOT from memory, photos, or imagination. (except where otherwise noted). Pay close attention to proportions (size relationships)

YOU MUST LABEL EACH PICTURE at the top with the appropriate title (ex: SB #1: Black & White Design )

Size                 0-5

Effort             0-10

Creativity       0-8

Title               0- 2

                     25 pts.

Sketchbook Assignments:

Below are just some of the sketchbook assignments we have done throughout the years. Not listed are the essential contour line & gesture drawings that are required throughout the year.

SB #2: Juxtaposition Drawing: Create a new object by combining 2 unrelated objects-one needs to be from nature, the other needs to be mechanical. Render with full shading. Medium: colored pencil

SB #3: Contour line: Look in your backpack or purse, pull out 5 things you use on a regular basis (phone can not be one!) arrange them in an interesting way, then draw a contour line drawing (outline only) of the composition. Medium: drawing pencils

SB #4: Scissor Metamorphosis : Use a pair of scissors as a beginning point, creatively transform the scissors into something else- a monster, a robot, a machine, a vehicle, an animal. Change its scale & it purpose. Render with full shading . Medium: colored pencils

SB #5: Student Choice: Choose your own subject and complete a drawing using skills & techniques learned in class. Medium: Your Choice

SB #6: Preposterous Cross-links: Choose any 2 words below to combine together in one image:

Turtle      Octopus      Snake        Bird       Bee          Rat    Fish      Cat

Pencil      Saw            Hammer    Pliers     Scissors  Tire    Clock   Drum

Medium: colored pencil

SB #7: Futuristic Mutation : Take an everyday object and use your imagination to redesign it with a futuristic look. Medium: colored pencils

SB #9: Shoe: Draw one of your shoes from your closet. Or a shoe that you think is very interesting (ballet, boot, etc.) ADD FULL SHADING Medium: colored pencil

SB #10: Wheels : Draw something with wheels (Real or imaginary). Medium: your choice

SB #11: 2D & 3D Arrows : Create a full page composition using a combination of 3-dimensional and 2-dimensional arrows. Use overlapping to break up the spaces into interesting positive and negative shapes. Medium: Outline with sharpie and fill the shapes with markers

SB #12: Non-objective: Create a non-objective drawing using lines, shapes (geometric) & color-use a color scheme ! Look at artwork by Wassily Kandinsky for inspiration. Medium: Markers or colored pencils

SB #13: Pet Portrait : Draw a picture of your pet or the pet you would LOVE to have. Medium: Colored Pencils

SB #15: Hand Value Study:  Draw your hand in 2 different appropriate positions (both on the same page). Render with full shading. Medium: drawing pencils

SB #16: Eye Study:   Find 4 different eyes in magazines. Cut them out & glue them to your sketchbook page. Draw the eyes underneath the picture & render with a FULL range of shading. Medium: pencils or colored pencils

SB #17: Color Scheme: Choose your own subject, create an obvious focal point and complete the drawing by coloring it in a color scheme of your choice. Label what color scheme you used next to the title. Medium: Colored Pencils, Paint, or Markers

SB #18: Realistic VS Abstract: Choose one object to draw (an interesting one! NOT simple!) Divide you sketchbook page in half with a pencil line. Label at the top of one side “Realistic” & on the other side label “Abstract.” Under the Realistic side, use a pencil to draw the object as realistically as you possibly can. On the Abstract side, distort your object so that it is still somewhat recognizable-use abstracted colors to color it. Medium: Colored Pencils

SB #19: Crushed Soda Can: Draw a crushed soda can, include details like the logo. Render with full shading. Medium: drawing pencils

SB #20: Worm’s Eye Point of View: Draw your choice of subject matter from a worm’s eye point of view. From below looking up at the subject. Add shading to indicate highlights & shadows. Medium: drawing pencil

Sketching Improves Your Skills

SB #21: Bird’s Eye Point of View: Draw your choice of subject matter from a bird’s eye point of view. From above looking down at the subject. Add shading to indicate highlights & shadows. Medium: drawing pencil

SB# 22: Paper Airplane:     Fold a paper airplane, place it in front of you & draw from direct observation as accurately as you can. ADD FULL SHADING Medium: drawing pencil

SB #23 : Creative Hand Drawing:   Trace you hand -yes I said Trace your hand on your page (tracing is usually forbidden). Use your imagination to turn you hand into something totally different. Add details-make it creative and interesting!    Medium: colored pencil

SB #24 : Cloth Drawing :    Draw the cloth that is hanging on the art room wall. ADD FULL SHADING Medium: Drawing pencil or Charcoal pencil (spray when finished)

SB #25: Interactive Drawing & Photo :  Fine a photo either of yourself or someone else (can be from a magazine). Cut the person out & brainstorm how you can create a drawing that combines the two so that they interact with each other. ADD FULL SHADING Medium: drawing pencils

SB #26: Flat to 3D- Come Alive: Look at the two examples below of a flat drawing-mostly lines/no shading that slowly transforms to become 3D with full shading. See MC Escher’s Drawing Hands for an example. Design your own drawing that morphs from flat to 3D. Medium: drawing pencils

SB #27: Visual Puns : Illustrate 2  visual puns (a visual rendering of a two-word noun phrase that illustrates the combination of the nouns with their literal meaning). Look at artist Don Stewart’s artwork  https://dsart.com/ Examples: hot dog, cat fish, hair brush, two face, fish face, bone head, Angel fish, Bat man, iron man, flower bed, Bed Bug, Boxing Match, Car pool, Card Shark, deviled Eggs, Fire Drill, Fish Tank, Football, Fruit Flies, Hammerhead, Handbag, Home Run, horse Fly, Jail Bird, Lightening Bug, Photo Bug, Strong Box, Submarine Sandwich, Swordfish, Watch Dog, Bird Brain, French Fries Medium: colored pencil

SB #28: Procreate Or Sketchbook App Drawing:  Use your iPad to create an ORIGINAL drawing of subject matter of your choice.  Medium: ipad

S B #29: Botanical Study:  Find a flower or plant from nature. Study it carefully before drawing. Draw the whole plant on 2/3rds of the page. Select 3 areas to “magnify” & draw smaller, partial up-close drawings of those 3 areas including all the details. ADD FULL SHADING Medium: watercolor, watercolor pencil, or drawing pencils

SB #31: Mixed Media Experiments: Have fun experimenting with mixed media techniques. Do the experimenting on other paper, then cut out the different experiments & glue them in your sketchbook. Label each experiment with a brief description of how you created it. Try at least 6 of these different experiments. Use up a minimum of 2 pages in your sketchbook. Medium:  various art supplies

SB #32: Collaged Music Sheet Drawing:  Glue a music sheet onto a page in your sketchbook-Let it dry completely (do at least one day in advance). Choose an image or two to draw with India ink & draw it directly onto the music sheet. Add color with watercolors or colored pencils. Medium: collage, ink, watercolors or colored pencils

Sketching Challenges Your Design Concepts

SB# 34: Line Inventory:   Draw two rows of four squares; one row of four vertical rectangles; and one row of four circles. When you have drawn your blank template, place four different kinds of lines in the first row of squares. Refer to the example below, but do not copy — come up with your own kinds of lines. Then, invent a series of variations on each line in the remaining columns. Medium: ink or sharpie

SB #35: Tool Metamorphosis: See Idea from Stan Winston School Choose a tool (hammer, ax, wrench, pliers, drill) as a beginning point, creatively transform the head of the tool into something else – a monster, a robot, a machine, a vehicle, and instruments, an animal, etc. Change its scale & it purpose. Render with full shading . Medium: colored pencils

SB #36 Balance Sketchbook Assignment: Draw 3 squares or circles. Use shape templates & rulers to create non-objective design examples of each type of balance (symmetrical, asymmetrical, & radial). See Types of Balance Lesson. Use Shape templates to create designs that illustrate each type of balance. Fit ALL designs on one page. Label & color them with colored pencils or markers.  Medium: colored pencils or markers

SB #37 Adult Portrait: Find a frontal view of an adult male or female. Cut it out or print it out. Open your sketchbook so it is showing 2 pages (a spread), glue onto the left side your sketchbook. On the right side use what we learned about adult human facial proportions to draw the portrait from the picture. Use light shading to indicate major values (highlights & shadows) or to lightly shade the nose. Medium: drawing pencils

SB #38 Refraction Drawing: Refraction is the visual distortion that happens when an object is viewed through a glass container filled with water (or some liquid). Find an interesting glass container (drinking glass, vase, jar, etc) and place a spoon or fork inside. Fill the container only half-way with water and place it on a light colored surface.  Carefully observe the distortion. Use observational drawing skills to draw the glass, spoon, water & any lights/ shadows you see on the table surface. Medium: drawing pencils

SB #39 Illuminated Letter :   Choose a letter to draw. Go on a computer & play with the letter in different fonts- choose one & print it out. Look up examples of illuminated letters for inspiration. Draw the letter large in your sketchbook in pencil. Add decoration to the letter, possibly even a border Medium: colored pencils, sharpies & markers

Sketching is an integral part of the creative process

SB #40 Fantasy Landscape: Use your imagination to draw a fantasy landscape. It can be anytime period on earth, in space or some other world. What type of plants, flowers, and trees would you see? What does the typography look like? can you see other worlds from the planet you are on? Are there buildings? What is gravity like in the land you are drawing? Medium: colored pencils

SB #42 Color Mood- Know about colors and their effect. Certain colors inspire certain emotions; learn to use them! Choose a color to explore, compose a realistic, abstract or non-objective drawing based on the emotion produced by a single color. Use the tints and shades of a color to add different values to the drawing.  Medium: colored pencils, watercolor pencils, or markers

• Black – authority, discipline, strength and promoting independence.
• Blue – cool, calming, relaxing, and promotes feelings of tranquility and peace.
• Green – balance, refreshing, normalizing, and promotes emotional growth.
• Orange – cheerful, commanding, and stimulates goodwill, conversation and appetites.
• Pink – calming, accepting, and encourages affection and socialization.
• Purple – comforting, spiritual, and generates mystery and a good sense of intuition.
• Red – empowerment, stimulation, drama, competition and passion.
• White – purification, energy, unity, and gives vigor to other colors it is used in combination with.
• Yellow – cheerful, expanding, and increases energy.

SB #43 Cast Shadows: Choose an object that has a lot of broken negative space (like a bike wheel). Using either natural light (Sun) or a lamp, position the light on the object so it creates a long and interesting cast shadow ( see bike example ). Compose a drawing that shows only a portion of the object & MOSTLY the cast shadow . Add value to the SHADOW, the rest can be contour line only. Medium: drawing pencils

How to Draw Steampunk Books:

SB #45 Broken Object Drawing : **ASK parents for an object that is not valuable. Break the object a little and then draw it showing all the broken fragments, tears, and loose debris. ***If you break something glass or metal, please wear protective gear (gloves and goggles) See Example by Armin Mersmann Medium: drawing pencils or colored pencils

SB #46 Travel Drawing : Draw a place you want to visit. Find a reference picture and create your drawing from that. Idea is from Art is Medicine Medium: colored pencils, drawing pencils, or watercolor pencils

SB #48 Merging Animals:  Combine 2 real animals to become a fantasy creature. Use characteristics of both and colors of both in the new design Medium: colored pencils

SB #49 Animal Eyes: Choose an eye to draw from these 4 types of creatures: Animal (land or sea), Bird, Reptile, and Insect. Draw 2 per page so they take up approximately ½ the page. Render with full shading.  Medium: colored pencils or Pen & Watercolor

Sketching brings new ideas & techniques to the surface

SB #50 Small to LARGE Enlargement Drawing : Choose 1-2 small objects to draw (less than 2”). Draw 3 preliminary sketches focusing on an interesting composition that enlarges the object (s) so much that it goes off the page on at least 3 sides of the paper. Medium: drawing pencils

SB #51 Magnification Drawing: Using a magnifying glass, look at an object or insect very closely. Draw the details of what you see. See The Helpful Art Teacher: Drawing Magnified Leaves Medium: colored pencils

SB #52 Sculpted Paper Strips Drawing : Credit- A Faithful Attempt-Curled Paper Drawings Give each student 2 strips of paper (½x11” & 1×11). Have students twist/bend/manipulate them into some type of curl or even add zig-zags. Tape them onto a sheet of paper so they are spread apart. Draw lightly with a HB pencil until they get the proportion just right. Use Drawing pencils 4B to add shading. Medium: Drawing Pencils

SB #55 New & Old: Find 2 objects to draw something new and something old or vintage. It would be most interesting to find an old and new example of one type of object (like phones, computers, mixers, anything that can show the progression of technology) Place them side by side or slightly overlapping each other and then draw them with full shading . Do research on the internet if needed Medium : drawing pencils

SB #56 Grid Journal: Read MilliAnde’s What is Grid Journaling  article, watch her video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmlEY5TK1zo , and view her examples. Choose a piece of architecture to explore (best to be physically present, but if you cannot then find several reference pictures to work from). In NONE of the grids will you draw the whole structure, you will focus on smaller sections.  Following her instructions draw your first box and one detail from the architecture. Next choose another detail to draw, make sure to draw the box to fit the detail. All the boxes should be different sizes. Continue to draw until you have between 7-10 boxes on one page.  Medium : Pen & Ink

Sketching Develops Communication Skills

SB #58: Skeleton of Animal Study: Choose an animal (living or extinct) to draw its skeletal structure. First, draw a contour line -outline ONLY- of the animal (FULL body). Second, draw the skeletal structure inside the outline. Third, use a sharpie to fill in the negative space behind the skeleton. Medium: Drawing pencil & Sharpie

 SB #61: Realistic & Geometric: Choose an animal to draw a head portrait of. Draw a line down the center of the face vertically. On the left hand side draw the animal realistically with color and shading and go over major lines with sharpie. On the right hand side draw the animal as if it were make up of simple triangles, circles and squares (simple geometric shapes) that follow the major contours and textures of the animal. Go over major lines with sharpie and add shading. See examples here &  here .    Medium: Sharpies and Colored Pencils

SB #62 See a Need Fill a Need:  Think of a common problem that humans or animals struggle with. Design a solution to fixing that problem. Write down what the problem is and write out your intentions to fix the problem. Draw the new solution with full coloring. Add descriptions of gadgets to help us understand your ideas. See Invention Idea List below to kick-start your thinking.  Medium: Colored Pencils and Ultra-thin Sharpie

Invention Idea List

• New utensil or tool
• Help someone break a bad habit
• A new way to prevent ___________
• Something to help children who have a certain disability
• Make something safer
• Help find or keep track of _____________
• A better way to ____________
• Recycle ____________ to make or do ____________

 SB #63: Texture Spheres: Draw 6 spheres (2-3″). Apply 6 different textures to the different spheres: fur, fish or dragon scales, craters, basket weaving, spikes, lumpy, bricks or stones .  Make sure your textures follow the contour of the sphere! Watch Video: Pen & Ink Drawing Tutorials | How to create realistic textures (Part 3) Medium: P en and Ink or sharpies 

SB #64: Unique Door Handles:  Find a reference photo of a unique door handle. Draw the door handle large on your page including part of the door in pencil, then use watercolor pencils to paint it. Add DETAILS and shading!  Medium: Watercolor Pencils

SB #65: Story Dice Cubes Drawing: Use Rory’s Story Cubes to roll 3-4 images. Develop a story or scene with these images and illustrate it in your sketchbook. Medium: Colored Pencils and Ultra-thin Sharpie

SB #69 Personification Drawing: According to Dictionary.com Personification is “the attribution of a human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.” Choose a man-made object to draw (stapler, hair dryer, etc) then draw the object, but personify it by giving it a face and other human characteristics. Medium: Sharpie and Colored Pencils

SB #70 Splatter Creature: Splatter some liquid watercolor on your page, blow it around with a straw. Let it dry. Now turn it into a creative creature (obviously fantasy). ADD LOTS OF DETAILS! Medium: Liquid Watercolors, Sharpie and markers

SB #71 Word Illustration: Choose a word (like Autumn, Flower, Candy, Science, etc) and create a FONT in which the letters are illustrations of the word you chose. See https://www.edinaschools.org/Page/4373 for examples of Mr.Henricksen’s 6th grade Word Art Project. EACH letter should be a different illustration of the word (ex: autumn: A-shape of candy corn, u-basket of apples, t-scarecrow, etc.) Medium: Sharpie and Colored Pencils

Sketching Builds Hand-eye Coordination and Develops Fine Motor Skills 

SB #72 Ball Point Pen Drawing: Choose a subject to draw. Render it with shading using only a ballpoint pen. Medium: Black or blue ballpoint pen

SB #73 Board Game Observational Drawing: Set up a board game with some of the game pieces on it. Choose a small section of the board to draw from. Render with shading. See Full Project from Nicole Brisco https://www.incredibleart.org/files/Nicole.htm#Mixed Medium: Drawing Pencils

SB #74 Organic Design Building: Design a building derived from an organic form (form found in nature). Draw the basic organic form and alter it into a building. Add details to the building that are influenced by the shapes, colors and textures of the organic form. See Example at https://www.studentartguide.com/lessons/art-lessons-for-substitute-teachers Medium: Colored Pencils

SB #75 Board Game Observational Drawing: Set up a board game with some of the game pieces on it. Choose a small section of the board to compose your drawing. Render with shading. Medium: Drawing Pencils

SB #76 Design Your Dream Swimming Pool: Design your dream swimming pool. What kinds of special features will it have-slides, bridges, pirate ships, fountains, etc. You can either draw from a bird’s eye view (directly above) or from a frontal view. Medium: Colored Pencils

SB #77  Candy Drawing:  Choose 3 different pieces of candy  (lollipop, ring-pop, gummy bear, peppermint, tootsie roll, candy cane, etc.). Arrange them so the partially overlap each other in an interesting way. Keep the candy in its wrapper (except for lollipops & ring pops). Take a picture of your composition from the viewpoint where you will be drawing from (so you can finish it later if needed). Draw in pencil as accurately as you can while looking at the candy directly. ( Look twice, Draw once ). Once drawn, render with shading in colored pencils. Medium: Drawing & Colored Pencils

SB #78  Thankful :  Think of something or someone you are thankful for. Draw it or them with SHADING! Medium: Drawing Pencils

SB #80 8 Ways of Seeing Part 1: (This assignment will be finished in 2 Parts) Website: https://medium.com/@katerutter/sketch-things-better-with-the-7-ways-of-seeing-6f9a24e5b9dd (my class’s assignment was slightly altered from the article)

Use a full spread (2 facing pages) & divide your sketchbook page into 8 sections- 4 on each page. Choose 1 object to draw & find a reference picture of it (Save to Photos). At the top of each section, write these titles: Symbolic, Gesture, Blind Contour, Simple Shapes, Contrast, Negative Space, Guided Contour, and Cartoon. Medium: 2B Pencil

1: Symbolic: Without looking at the object, draw a simple version of it. Sketch the “idea” of the object, not the specific thing. (think of logo symbols and how simple they are) 2: Gesture: Look at the object and make a very quick sketch of it, using only a few lines. Try to capture the “energy” and “rhythm” of the subject. Work super-fast! 3: Blind Contour: Without looking at your pen or your paper, use your eyes to “trace” the edges of the object, while, at the same time, using your pen to draw the outline in a steady, continuous line. Don’t look at your paper, and don’t pick up your pen! Go slow. 4: Simple Shapes: Stare at the object and break it down into basic shapes in your head. Aim for 3–4 shapes…no more than 6! Draw the shapes on your paper.

8 Ways of Seeing Part 2:  Using the same object from SB#5, create these drawings: 5: Contrast: Stare at the object and identify the shadows and darkest parts. Draw ONLY the darkest parts. Don’t draw outlines or lines unless they are the darkest parts. 6: Negative Space: Draw the space AROUND the object. Try to get as much detail in the shape as possible. When you’re done, draw a box around the shape and quickly fill it in. 7: Guided Contour: Look intently at the object and use your eyes to “trace” the edges of the object, while simultaneously using your pen to draw the outlines and shapes. Glance back and forth between the object and your paper. Try to get as much accurate detail as possible while still working at a quick pace. 8: Cartoon: Turn the object into a cartoon. Use abstraction methods: simplify edges, twist, stretch, pull, distort color, resize, exaggerate.

SB #81 Anthropomorphic: Anthropomorphic , derived from the Greek word anthrōposi , which means “human being”. It means suggesting human characteristics for animals or inanimate things. Toys can move, think and can talk; candlesticks and teapots can sing and dance. Choose an object or animal to transform anthropomorphically. Medium: Colored Pencil

HOW to Draw Anthropomorphic Animals and Objects:

• Make them bipedal (walking on two legs)
• Give them clothing and human accessories (make-up, glasses, hats, etc)
• Create animated facial expressions
• Change their proportions to more human-like body proportions
• Show them holding objects and otherwise change their physical abilities to include human abilities
• Show them doing human tasks (painting, driving a car, etc)

This Website has good ideas of how to create anthropomorphic characters: https://design.tutsplus.com/articles/how-to-draw-furries-aka-anthropomorphic-characters–cms-30243

SB #82 Texture Rubbings: Explore physical texture through texture rubbings. Divide your sketchbook page into 10 boxes. Find 10 actual textures from your surroundings. Create rubbings from the textures in your sketchbook by placing the object under your page and rubbing a crayon (on its side) over the object. Label the box with the object. Medium: Crayons & Watercolors

SB #83 16 Circle Challenge: (Modified 30 Circle Challenge ) Use a circle template to draw 16 circles on your page in pencil. Turn each of the circles into unique recognizable objects. You can draw inside and outside the circles. Medium: Drawing Pencils

Additional Sketchbook Resource s:

Student Art Guide: Tips for Producing an Amazing GCSE or A Level Art Sketchbook

Deep Space Sparkle- The Sketchbook Project (k-5th grades)

Other HS Art Project Ideas

• Beyond the Border Pen & Watercolor HS Project
• Mixed Media Drawing Collage
• Motorcycle Mixed-Media Art Lesson High School
• Ceramics Roll-A-Beast Animal Sculptures

Have you done any unique sketchbook assignments with your students? If so, I would love to hear about them! //

PLEASE Share this Post:

Just found your blog while doing some research on sketchbook assignments. This is a life saver! I am going to assign 10 for now to see how it goes with my students. Thank you for sharing!

Great Cynthia! These are good assignments for developing creativity & imagination. I have used all of these in my classroom & seen success with them! Let me know if you have any suggestions. Michelle

This is amazing! I always struggle with inspiring myself on what to draw, and this is perfect! Something new for every day 🙂

Thank you for the ideas! I am just starting out and find these very helpful. Are these assignments done at home or in class? What type of sketch books do you require? Spiral, bound, hand made?

Hi! These assignments are homework-outside of class (unless they finish a project, then they can work on the sketchbook assignment). I require a 70+ page spiral bound sketchbook (I like the single loop & if it has a folder that’s awesome!). I also prefer a heavier weight (80-90#). I will add a link to the top of this page with what I prefer.

Blessings on your school year!!

These are some great ideas for use as home work, thank you!

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Designing Assignments for Learning

The rapid shift to remote teaching and learning meant that many instructors reimagined their assessment practices. Whether adapting existing assignments or creatively designing new opportunities for their students to learn, instructors focused on helping students make meaning and demonstrate their learning outside of the traditional, face-to-face classroom setting. This resource distills the elements of assignment design that are important to carry forward as we continue to seek better ways of assessing learning and build on our innovative assignment designs.

On this page:

Rethinking traditional tests, quizzes, and exams.

• Examples from the Columbia University Classroom
• Tips for Designing Assignments for Learning

Reflect On Your Assignment Design

Connect with the ctl.

• Resources and References

Cite this resource: Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning (2021). Designing Assignments for Learning. Columbia University. Retrieved [today’s date] from https://ctl.columbia.edu/resources-and-technology/teaching-with-technology/teaching-online/designing-assignments/

Traditional assessments tend to reveal whether students can recognize, recall, or replicate what was learned out of context, and tend to focus on students providing correct responses (Wiggins, 1990). In contrast, authentic assignments, which are course assessments, engage students in higher order thinking, as they grapple with real or simulated challenges that help them prepare for their professional lives, and draw on the course knowledge learned and the skills acquired to create justifiable answers, performances or products (Wiggins, 1990). An authentic assessment provides opportunities for students to practice, consult resources, learn from feedback, and refine their performances and products accordingly (Wiggins 1990, 1998, 2014). 

Authentic assignments ask students to “do” the subject with an audience in mind and apply their learning in a new situation. Examples of authentic assignments include asking students to: 

• Write for a real audience (e.g., a memo, a policy brief, letter to the editor, a grant proposal, reports, building a website) and/or publication;
• Solve problem sets that have real world application; 
• Design projects that address a real world problem; 
• Engage in a community-partnered research project;
• Create an exhibit, performance, or conference presentation ;
• Compile and reflect on their work through a portfolio/e-portfolio.

Noteworthy elements of authentic designs are that instructors scaffold the assignment, and play an active role in preparing students for the tasks assigned, while students are intentionally asked to reflect on the process and product of their work thus building their metacognitive skills (Herrington and Oliver, 2000; Ashford-Rowe, Herrington and Brown, 2013; Frey, Schmitt, and Allen, 2012). 

It’s worth noting here that authentic assessments can initially be time consuming to design, implement, and grade. They are critiqued for being challenging to use across course contexts and for grading reliability issues (Maclellan, 2004). Despite these challenges, authentic assessments are recognized as beneficial to student learning (Svinicki, 2004) as they are learner-centered (Weimer, 2013), promote academic integrity (McLaughlin, L. and Ricevuto, 2021; Sotiriadou et al., 2019; Schroeder, 2021) and motivate students to learn (Ambrose et al., 2010). The Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning is always available to consult with faculty who are considering authentic assessment designs and to discuss challenges and affordances.   

Examples from the Columbia University Classroom 

Columbia instructors have experimented with alternative ways of assessing student learning from oral exams to technology-enhanced assignments. Below are a few examples of authentic assignments in various teaching contexts across Columbia University. 

• E-portfolios: Statia Cook shares her experiences with an ePorfolio assignment in her co-taught Frontiers of Science course (a submission to the Voices of Hybrid and Online Teaching and Learning initiative); CUIMC use of ePortfolios ;
• Case studies: Columbia instructors have engaged their students in authentic ways through case studies drawing on the Case Consortium at Columbia University. Read and watch a faculty spotlight to learn how Professor Mary Ann Price uses the case method to place pre-med students in real-life scenarios;
• Simulations: students at CUIMC engage in simulations to develop their professional skills in The Mary & Michael Jaharis Simulation Center in the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and the Helene Fuld Health Trust Simulation Center in the Columbia School of Nursing; 
• Experiential learning: instructors have drawn on New York City as a learning laboratory such as Barnard’s NYC as Lab webpage which highlights courses that engage students in NYC;
• Design projects that address real world problems: Yevgeniy Yesilevskiy on the Engineering design projects completed using lab kits during remote learning. Watch Dr. Yesilevskiy talk about his teaching and read the Columbia News article . 
• Writing assignments: Lia Marshall and her teaching associate Aparna Balasundaram reflect on their “non-disposable or renewable assignments” to prepare social work students for their professional lives as they write for a real audience; and Hannah Weaver spoke about a sandbox assignment used in her Core Literature Humanities course at the 2021 Celebration of Teaching and Learning Symposium . Watch Dr. Weaver share her experiences.  

​Tips for Designing Assignments for Learning

While designing an effective authentic assignment may seem like a daunting task, the following tips can be used as a starting point. See the Resources section for frameworks and tools that may be useful in this effort.  

Align the assignment with your course learning objectives 

Identify the kind of thinking that is important in your course, the knowledge students will apply, and the skills they will practice using through the assignment. What kind of thinking will students be asked to do for the assignment? What will students learn by completing this assignment? How will the assignment help students achieve the desired course learning outcomes? For more information on course learning objectives, see the CTL’s Course Design Essentials self-paced course and watch the video on Articulating Learning Objectives .  

Identify an authentic meaning-making task

For meaning-making to occur, students need to understand the relevance of the assignment to the course and beyond (Ambrose et al., 2010). To Bean (2011) a “meaning-making” or “meaning-constructing” task has two dimensions: 1) it presents students with an authentic disciplinary problem or asks students to formulate their own problems, both of which engage them in active critical thinking, and 2) the problem is placed in “a context that gives students a role or purpose, a targeted audience, and a genre.” (Bean, 2011: 97-98). 

An authentic task gives students a realistic challenge to grapple with, a role to take on that allows them to “rehearse for the complex ambiguities” of life, provides resources and supports to draw on, and requires students to justify their work and the process they used to inform their solution (Wiggins, 1990). Note that if students find an assignment interesting or relevant, they will see value in completing it. 

Consider the kind of activities in the real world that use the knowledge and skills that are the focus of your course. How is this knowledge and these skills applied to answer real-world questions to solve real-world problems? (Herrington et al., 2010: 22). What do professionals or academics in your discipline do on a regular basis? What does it mean to think like a biologist, statistician, historian, social scientist? How might your assignment ask students to draw on current events, issues, or problems that relate to the course and are of interest to them? How might your assignment tap into student motivation and engage them in the kinds of thinking they can apply to better understand the world around them? (Ambrose et al., 2010). 

Determine the evaluation criteria and create a rubric

To ensure equitable and consistent grading of assignments across students, make transparent the criteria you will use to evaluate student work. The criteria should focus on the knowledge and skills that are central to the assignment. Build on the criteria identified, create a rubric that makes explicit the expectations of deliverables and share this rubric with your students so they can use it as they work on the assignment. For more information on rubrics, see the CTL’s resource Incorporating Rubrics into Your Grading and Feedback Practices , and explore the Association of American Colleges & Universities VALUE Rubrics (Valid Assessment of Learning in Undergraduate Education). 

Build in metacognition

Ask students to reflect on what and how they learned from the assignment. Help students uncover personal relevance of the assignment, find intrinsic value in their work, and deepen their motivation by asking them to reflect on their process and their assignment deliverable. Sample prompts might include: what did you learn from this assignment? How might you draw on the knowledge and skills you used on this assignment in the future? See Ambrose et al., 2010 for more strategies that support motivation and the CTL’s resource on Metacognition ). 

Provide students with opportunities to practice

Design your assignment to be a learning experience and prepare students for success on the assignment. If students can reasonably expect to be successful on an assignment when they put in the required effort ,with the support and guidance of the instructor, they are more likely to engage in the behaviors necessary for learning (Ambrose et al., 2010). Ensure student success by actively teaching the knowledge and skills of the course (e.g., how to problem solve, how to write for a particular audience), modeling the desired thinking, and creating learning activities that build up to a graded assignment. Provide opportunities for students to practice using the knowledge and skills they will need for the assignment, whether through low-stakes in-class activities or homework activities that include opportunities to receive and incorporate formative feedback. For more information on providing feedback, see the CTL resource Feedback for Learning . 

Communicate about the assignment 

Share the purpose, task, audience, expectations, and criteria for the assignment. Students may have expectations about assessments and how they will be graded that is informed by their prior experiences completing high-stakes assessments, so be transparent. Tell your students why you are asking them to do this assignment, what skills they will be using, how it aligns with the course learning outcomes, and why it is relevant to their learning and their professional lives (i.e., how practitioners / professionals use the knowledge and skills in your course in real world contexts and for what purposes). Finally, verify that students understand what they need to do to complete the assignment. This can be done by asking students to respond to poll questions about different parts of the assignment, a “scavenger hunt” of the assignment instructions–giving students questions to answer about the assignment and having them work in small groups to answer the questions, or by having students share back what they think is expected of them.

Plan to iterate and to keep the focus on learning 

Draw on multiple sources of data to help make decisions about what changes are needed to the assignment, the assignment instructions, and/or rubric to ensure that it contributes to student learning. Explore assignment performance data. As Deandra Little reminds us: “a really good assignment, which is a really good assessment, also teaches you something or tells the instructor something. As much as it tells you what students are learning, it’s also telling you what they aren’t learning.” ( Teaching in Higher Ed podcast episode 337 ). Assignment bottlenecks–where students get stuck or struggle–can be good indicators that students need further support or opportunities to practice prior to completing an assignment. This awareness can inform teaching decisions. 

Triangulate the performance data by collecting student feedback, and noting your own reflections about what worked well and what did not. Revise the assignment instructions, rubric, and teaching practices accordingly. Consider how you might better align your assignment with your course objectives and/or provide more opportunities for students to practice using the knowledge and skills that they will rely on for the assignment. Additionally, keep in mind societal, disciplinary, and technological changes as you tweak your assignments for future use. 

Now is a great time to reflect on your practices and experiences with assignment design and think critically about your approach. Take a closer look at an existing assignment. Questions to consider include: What is this assignment meant to do? What purpose does it serve? Why do you ask students to do this assignment? How are they prepared to complete the assignment? Does the assignment assess the kind of learning that you really want? What would help students learn from this assignment? 

Using the tips in the previous section: How can the assignment be tweaked to be more authentic and meaningful to students? 

As you plan forward for post-pandemic teaching and reflect on your practices and reimagine your course design, you may find the following CTL resources helpful: Reflecting On Your Experiences with Remote Teaching , Transition to In-Person Teaching , and Course Design Support .

The Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) is here to help!

For assistance with assignment design, rubric design, or any other teaching and learning need, please request a consultation by emailing [email protected] . 

Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT) framework for assignments. The TILT Examples and Resources page ( https://tilthighered.com/tiltexamplesandresources ) includes example assignments from across disciplines, as well as a transparent assignment template and a checklist for designing transparent assignments . Each emphasizes the importance of articulating to students the purpose of the assignment or activity, the what and how of the task, and specifying the criteria that will be used to assess students. 

Association of American Colleges & Universities (AAC&U) offers VALUE ADD (Assignment Design and Diagnostic) tools ( https://www.aacu.org/value-add-tools ) to help with the creation of clear and effective assignments that align with the desired learning outcomes and associated VALUE rubrics (Valid Assessment of Learning in Undergraduate Education). VALUE ADD encourages instructors to explicitly state assignment information such as the purpose of the assignment, what skills students will be using, how it aligns with course learning outcomes, the assignment type, the audience and context for the assignment, clear evaluation criteria, desired formatting, and expectations for completion whether individual or in a group.

Villarroel et al. (2017) propose a blueprint for building authentic assessments which includes four steps: 1) consider the workplace context, 2) design the authentic assessment; 3) learn and apply standards for judgement; and 4) give feedback. 

References 

Ambrose, S. A., Bridges, M. W., & DiPietro, M. (2010). Chapter 3: What Factors Motivate Students to Learn? In How Learning Works: Seven Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching . Jossey-Bass. 

Ashford-Rowe, K., Herrington, J., and Brown, C. (2013). Establishing the critical elements that determine authentic assessment. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education. 39(2), 205-222, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2013.819566 .  

Bean, J.C. (2011). Engaging Ideas: The Professor’s Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom . Second Edition. Jossey-Bass. 

Frey, B. B, Schmitt, V. L., and Allen, J. P. (2012). Defining Authentic Classroom Assessment. Practical Assessment, Research, and Evaluation. 17(2). DOI: https://doi.org/10.7275/sxbs-0829  

Herrington, J., Reeves, T. C., and Oliver, R. (2010). A Guide to Authentic e-Learning . Routledge. 

Herrington, J. and Oliver, R. (2000). An instructional design framework for authentic learning environments. Educational Technology Research and Development, 48(3), 23-48. 

Litchfield, B. C. and Dempsey, J. V. (2015). Authentic Assessment of Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes. New Directions for Teaching and Learning. 142 (Summer 2015), 65-80. 

Maclellan, E. (2004). How convincing is alternative assessment for use in higher education. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education. 29(3), June 2004. DOI: 10.1080/0260293042000188267

McLaughlin, L. and Ricevuto, J. (2021). Assessments in a Virtual Environment: You Won’t Need that Lockdown Browser! Faculty Focus. June 2, 2021. 

Mueller, J. (2005). The Authentic Assessment Toolbox: Enhancing Student Learning through Online Faculty Development . MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching. 1(1). July 2005. Mueller’s Authentic Assessment Toolbox is available online. 

Schroeder, R. (2021). Vaccinate Against Cheating With Authentic Assessment . Inside Higher Ed. (February 26, 2021).  

Sotiriadou, P., Logan, D., Daly, A., and Guest, R. (2019). The role of authentic assessment to preserve academic integrity and promote skills development and employability. Studies in Higher Education. 45(111), 2132-2148. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2019.1582015    

Stachowiak, B. (Host). (November 25, 2020). Authentic Assignments with Deandra Little. (Episode 337). In Teaching in Higher Ed . https://teachinginhighered.com/podcast/authentic-assignments/  

Svinicki, M. D. (2004). Authentic Assessment: Testing in Reality. New Directions for Teaching and Learning. 100 (Winter 2004): 23-29. 

Villarroel, V., Bloxham, S, Bruna, D., Bruna, C., and Herrera-Seda, C. (2017). Authentic assessment: creating a blueprint for course design. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education. 43(5), 840-854. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2017.1412396    

Weimer, M. (2013). Learner-Centered Teaching: Five Key Changes to Practice . Second Edition. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. 

Wiggins, G. (2014). Authenticity in assessment, (re-)defined and explained. Retrieved from https://grantwiggins.wordpress.com/2014/01/26/authenticity-in-assessment-re-defined-and-explained/

Wiggins, G. (1998). Teaching to the (Authentic) Test. Educational Leadership . April 1989. 41-47. 

Wiggins, Grant (1990). The Case for Authentic Assessment . Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation , 2(2). 

Wondering how AI tools might play a role in your course assignments?

See the CTL’s resource “Considerations for AI Tools in the Classroom.”

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Drawing for Graphic Design: 6 Exercises to Sharpen Your Skills

When talking about drawing for graphic design projects, we’re very often talking about a digital process. We’re so used to sitting in front of our computers, plugging away at pixels in Photoshop and Illustrator, that we sometimes forget to step away, grab a pen or pencil, and just draw . Here, we provide six simple drawing practice exercises that revolve around drawing for graphic design. These were pulled from Timothy Samara’s book on that subject. Timothy teaches Graphic Design Fundamentals at CreativeLive and his exercises will help you get started, and hopefully, breathe new life into your work.

1. Positive/Negative

This study trains the eye to tell form from space and pick out different levels of value.

1. Choose a simple object to draw. This can be just about anything you’ve got lying around: a cup of coffee, a pair of scissors, or a desk chair should do nicely.

2. Instead of trying to draw the object itself, draw the negative space that surrounds the object. Define the shape with contoured fields of color rather than lines.

3. Now the actual shape of the object should be defined, so go in and add details using pencil or a lighter charcoal to create different values. Add each level independently, beginning with shadows. In each iteration, increase the number of levels between black and white.

2. Form Language: Motif and Evolution

This quick study starts with original mark-making, then turns it into a motif through repeated movements.

1. Using any medium—pencil, brush, marker—make repeated, unique movements to create a rhythmic motif.

2. On a larger sheet of paper, repeat the motif over and over again to create a pattern that seems balanced and stable. The motif should retain its individuality, but no instance of it should optically disconnect or be emphasized more than any others. The field of texture it builds should seem continuous and undisturbed.

3. Finally, repeat the motif at different scales, using different media, and different values. Number the reiterations in each stage and date the sets. Periodically revisit the study and use different motifs to build a library for reference.

3. Rough Traces: Mass & Contour

This study helps to understand how to connect gestural language and pictorial depiction to introduce stylization at a basic level.

1. Choose a photo of an object, figure, or scene.

2. On tracing paper, quickly rough in the subject’s masses. Work with the image at a reduced size so that the medium no matter how controllable, captures essential mass shapes as bluntly and directly as possible. Use a combination of media or multiple values or colors for different masses.

3. In the next stage, focus on the image’s contours, outlining its major shapes. Using a continuous line, draw the contours without lifting the tool from the surface, creating a loopy network of connective contours.

4. Icon Studies

This study develops skill with simple pictorial reduction and stylization, through observation and editing skills.

Choose an animal or common object as a subject. The goal here will be to achieve an important distinguishing characteristic of an icon that is nonspecific. An icon of a clock, for instance, should not identify it as a certain kind of clock, but instead capture the neutral, universal aspects of all clocks.

Do a couple of different versions from different angles and compare them to see which is most recognizable and combine different aspects to change the silhouette.

5. Nonpictorial Narrative: Gestural Field

In this study, use your imagination to create emotional gestures through drawing.

1. Using a medium of your choice, make 2 sets of marks that depict contrasting emotions. Avoid using common clichés and symbols like hearts and stars, and focus on visualizing opposite emotions such as anxiety and joy.

2. Develop several variations for each emotion.

3. Compare and contrast your variations, noting which characteristic identifies each and sets them apart. Consider how these marks signal different emotions to you and how that could affect your work on future projects.

6. Stylization: Putting it all together

Using the steps above, create a narrative that reinforces the relationship between form and meaning.

Combine a variety of stylistic, pictorial motifs from the previous exercises to communicate a more meaningful narrative. Arrange a selection of three images and juxtapose certain elements to create different moods and meanings. By playing with the different studies and their interactions, you can create different stories and meanings for each. It’s a fun way to explore different mediums and not get hung up on tiny details.

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Emily J. Potts has been a writer and editor in the design industry for more than 20 years. Currently she is an independent writer working for a variety of clients in the design industry. www.emilyjpotts.com

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10 Essential Freehand Drawing Exercises for Architects

• Written by Natascha Meuser
• Published on March 22, 2017

The following excerpt was originally published in Natascha Meuser's Construction and Design Manual: Architecture Drawings (DOM Publishers). With our industry's technological advances, "the designing architect is not simultaneously the drawing architect." Meuser's manual aims to help architects develop and hone their technical drawing skills as the "practical basis and form of communication for architects, artists, and engineers." Read on for ten freehand drawing exercises that tackle issues ranging from proportion and order to perspective and space.

What is beauty? A few years ago, a group of international researchers sought to unravel the mysteries of human beauty. They used state-of-the-art, totally impartial computer technology and a huge dataset to establish once and for all why particular faces are perceived as beautiful, and whether beauty exists independently of ethnic, social and cultural background; in other words, whether it can be calculated mathematically. The scientists input countless photos of faces from all over the world, each described by survey respondents as particularly beautiful, into a powerful computer. The resulting information, they believed, could be used to generate a face that would be recognized by any human being as possessing absolute beauty. But what the computer eventually spat out was a picture of an ordinary face, neither beautiful nor ugly, devoid of both life and character. It left most viewers cold. The accumulated data had created not superhuman beauty, but a statistically correct average.

But that is precisely what you would expect of a computer. Here, I want to examine the relevance of this anecdote to architectural beauty, and discuss whether drawing by hand, a skill fast disappearing from everyday practice, is one worth preserving. It would appear to be a relic of the past – but does that mean that computer-generated images are the future? Thanks to modern design and display software, the intention of this book may seem quaintly anachronistic. Would any architect today think of presenting a client with a building detail drawn in Indian ink, or a perspective in pencil?

Clients often expect designers to produce pixel-perfect images right from the beginning of the design process, looking not unlike photographs at first glance. And even before the ground is broken, a virtual idea has already acquired the authority of a tangible reality that serves as the benchmark during the construction process. Often, the client is disappointed because a detail bears no resemblance to the initial plan. Sometimes, poor-quality rendering ends up provoking a protracted legal dispute: was the balcony supposed to be made of reinforced concrete, or just brightly painted steel? Like it or not, the computer is a handy desktop tool, a creativity machine that translates the most outlandish fantasies into physically realizable, fully costed designs that can be altered at a click of a mouse. The resulting photorealistic printout gives form to an idea that has not really even taken shape in the architect’s own mind.

It is easy to forget that, for all its apparent creative talents, the computer is just a machine. The image that emerges from the printer is like that of the perfect face in the experiment, shaped by complex, soulless programs. Paradoxically, the tool we use in an attempt to make it look less soulless is also the computer. After all, animation means adding life and soul to an otherwise lifeless object, creating a realistic, perhaps even moving image using infallible, invisible and incomprehensible computer code. The spaces inhabited by avatars in computer games are not greatly different to the standard CAD output used by architects to persuade developers, contractors, clients, and competition juries.

Precision is the death of thought

Anyone looking for soul in a building or interior design will not find it in these colorful animated digital images. Their impressive perfection is artificial and deceptive, their precision a challenge to the viewer’s imagination. To put it bluntly, architects who rely solely on the design skills of their computers are neglecting what was once one of their profession’s core skills since time immemorial: the connection of eye, head, and hand to create sketches, drawings, designs and plans.

In the old days, prospective architects had to start by learning to use a pen, analyzing structure, proportion, cubature, light and shade to break down the world into its component parts and reassemble them on the paper. To do this, their eyes and hands had to be trained. This can be an enjoyable and intuitive process: as my drawing teacher Heinrich Pittner once said, ‘What counts is not knowledge, but inspiration.’ His methods were based on clear principles, and he was not only a teacher but also a poetic artist with a philosophical turn of mind, who used simple exercises to teach the complexity of architecture. He made his students feel that they were both artists and architects. The next person I encountered who displayed this passion for architectural education was Alfred Caldwell, a legendary lecturer at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. His personality alone made his lectures worth the metaphorical price of admission, and he used to say: ‘The individuality of architecture is always based on personal experience.’ The following chapter is devoted to Pittner’s methods, which teach the basic principles of freehand architectural drawing in nine steps. The exercises can be carried out in any order, and are anything but comprehensive, but their aim is to introduce trainee architects and other interested readers to one of the most creative areas of architecture. Even experienced draftspeople should find the exercises an enjoyable reminder of their own training. This is also a reminder that the drawing marks the architect’s emergence as creator, giving visible expression to a unique idea without the help of computer programs. While many would say it is an outmoded pictorial technique, drawing transforms the idea into the intangible basis of the entire design process. In this context, and at this stage in the project, the image is not a mirror of reality, but it gives the idea credibility.

A decision that only the architect can take

Architectural drawing is like photography: it is no good having a high-end, feature-packed camera if you lack the ability to compose images and to capture the essence of the subject. Having the technology to generate preliminary architectural and design ideas does not necessarily mean that the final result will be convincing. The choice of medium, be it 6B pencil, drawing pen or watercolor brush, is no guarantee of good architecture, which demands a basic understanding of proportion, perspective, form, and color. The ability to connect the eyes, mind, and hand when designing details, buildings and cities also requires familiarity with a wide variety of architectural cultures, periods, and styles. It entails knowing, based on practical experience, that ideas build on one another, and -being able to absorb and develop traditions and use one’s own outlook and ideas to create distinctive buildings for clients that can be highly valued.

Such is the nature of architecture: it is very rarely created in a vacuum and is usually part of a context of variety and difference. Take away the sharp edges of architectural space, and you are left with nothing. The architect’s penstroke brings it together and gives it form, which assumes an ability to imagine the space and give it proportion, structure, and beauty. Only the architect can take these decisions. Like all talents, architectural imagination and creativity are God-given, but also born of practice and experience. People who have seen, understood and adapted other people’s ideas are more easily able to come up with ideas of their own, drawing on a rich menu of visual and spatial ingredients. A person who uses drawing to explore the built environment sees its variety in a different light, and perhaps with greater respect, than someone who can imagine nonexistent space only by donning 3D spectacles. Architecture and the art of drawing are inseparable – and people who are good at drawing usually make good architects.

Exercise 1: Point and Line

Points, lines and planes are the architect’s means of expression and are combined to create the three-dimensional spaces of architecture. This exercise uses only points and lines to build, first, basic geometric shapes, and then landscapes and places. Compression and changes of direction are used to create the identifying outlines of forms and spaces, define distances and clarify spatial depth. Our approach to architectural space begins with an excursion into art, with a quotation from the painter and Bauhaus teacher Paul Klee: ‘I begin wherever the pictorial form itself begins: with the point that moves.’

Exercise 2: Proportion and Order

Every building project begins with a simple exercise: draw, measure, think. Finding harmonious relationships between the parts of a building, and between the parts and the whole, helps to order the elements of the design. The basic principles of proportion are dependent on finding relationships between measurements and have remained almost unchanged since the ancient Greeks and Romans. The golden section, Renaissance theories and Le Corbusier ’s Modulor are all based on the proportions of the human body and describe a line divided into sections, the shorter of which stands in the same ratio to the larger as the larger section to the whole. These laws and relationships allow architects to create meaningful, harmonious connections and are a key moment of creative inspiration. This drawing exercise trains the eye by analyzing the dimensional relationships between geometric solids, and also provides a basic introduction to architecture with relation to elements, construction, and composition.

Exercise 3: Geometry and Space

All variety of form depends on identifying measured relationships. This exercise, too, is based on simple geometric forms: the triangle, square, circle, pyramid, cube and sphere, cutting them up and reassembling them in new ways. Architecture derives its endless variety from combinations of two- and three-dimensional shapes, and from projecting two-dimensional surfaces into the third dimension. In the words of Heinrich Pittner, ‘If you want to achieve an outcome, you must see abstraction and reality as a unity. We are architects, not artists, but abstraction is the basis of our designs.’

Exercise 4: Perspective and Space

Freehand drawing can be used to learn and practice the right way of seeing, but also requires a basic knowledge of perspective construction methods and their history. In the Middle Ages, space was still seen as a plane, but the Renaissance discovery of vanishing-point perspective brought major changes in the visual arts. This form of perspective remains an important medium of communication for today’s architects, whether they draw by hand or use a computer. The purpose of this exercise is to learn the principles of freehand perspective and spatial construction. Each point has a measurable position in the space, and the exercise involves drawing two or more simple objects turned or shifted in relation to each other. It takes only a small number of lines to create a three-dimensional representation. The exercise teaches the artistic and technical aspects of drawing, using an enjoyable artistic approach to such simple principles of construction as horizon, viewpoint and vanishing point. It also entails identifying, absorbing and analyzing dimensions and proportions, because drawing is ultimately about not just knowledge, but the inspiration born of individual perception.

Exercise 5: Composition and Space

Architectural drawing always involves composition and the abstraction of the depicted space. To draw spatially is to see spatially. The purpose of this exercise is to build up a composition step by step, creating tensions using hierarchies of detail and whole, center and periphery, front and back, top and bottom, dark and light. This brings out complex spatial relationships and makes visible the forces that form space. In the exercise, simple forms and gradual abstraction are built up and composed on the picture surface. "Architecture is an artifice, an appearance of inner movement. It goes far beyond issues of construction. The purpose of construction is to create durability, and the -purpose of architecture is to stir our inner selves. As soon as specific relationships are created, we grasp the work." Le Corbusier, Vers une architecture (1923)

Exercise 6: Man and Space

The theory of proportion dates back to Vitruvius and thus the early days of architectural theory. Up and into the time of the Renaissance, theories of art focused on the notion of human scale and determined the continuity of a harmonious design and proportioning. Vitruvius also factored the proportions of the human body into the tectonic system of a building and placed these in a proportional context. In particular, studies on the human body can be gleaned from Leonardo da Vinci, who was a pioneer in the understanding of human anatomy. Alberti had already demonstrated that each regular shape can be constructed from circles and squares. Le Corbusier , in turn, discovered a harmonious design of the human figure according to the golden ratio. He named the human figure Modulor which he based on the height of a man with his arm raised and integrated into his spaces for emphasis. This art figure is still today synonymous with a style of architecture adapted to suit the human environment. The relationship between man and space will form the content of this exercise. In the process, the aim is not only to analyze the proportions of the human body but also its proportionality in space. Here it is less significant honing drawing techniques but developing a feeling for a composition of man and space that matters.

Exercise 7: Light and Colour

Light and color are closely related, and play a mutually reinforcing role within the design process. The purpose of this second exercise is to discover the basic elements of color theory, and learn the main color mixes. The primary colors red, blue and yellow can be used to create any other color except black – mix all three, and the result is brown. Colour theory is also the theory of harmony, which deals with the interaction of colors and tones. The purpose of the exercise is to understand the phenomenon of color as a whole, based on the theories of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Exercise 8: Nature and Design

This exercise, in which nature provides the inspiration for the design process, involves drawing an open flower at the final stage of growth and then using its geometry as the basis for various floor plans. The purpose of the exercise is to design architectural structures using natural forms, so nature herself is the inspiration. It highlights the origins and theory of design: in the words of Albrecht Dürer, ‘Art is hidden in nature. If you can tear it out, you have it.’ Albrecht Dürer

Exercise 9: Two-minute Sketches

Learning to draw means learning to see, as the eye seeks, observes and understands. This exercise aims to encourage- spontaneity by imposing a time limit; the act of producing a rapid initial sketch forces us to decide how much visual information we want to convey. The sketches are a way of experimenting without needing to produce a complete or perfect result. The aim is to develop a strong sense of expressiveness by being confident from the first penstroke. ‘When I went to see Matisse one morning, he was still in bed, but he had his drawing board in front of him and was drawing the same head with great concentration and rapid strokes. Each time he finished one, he threw the piece of paper onto the floor beside the bed and began another, so he was surrounded by a pile of paper. Seeing my surprise, he laughed and said: “I’m like a dancer or a skater. I practice every morning so that when the moment- arrives, I’m completely in control of my jumps and pirouettes.”’ Werner Haftmann, Documenta III (1964)

Exercise 10: Freehand Drawing

A good plein-air drawing is not simply a depiction of nature under a cloudless sky. It leaves space for inspiration, using the model and natural objects and forms, to practice line and composition. In this exercise, a single motif is depicted using a variety of techniques, with the choice of drawing medium and color playing an important role. The intention is to encourage visual thinking, design variations, and drawing as a process. If freehand drawing is what we learn from seeing, sketching is an aid to thinking like a designer. Architects use sketches to test out, change and add to their ideas. Many students do not realize how much creative wealth lies hidden inside them, and freehand drawing reveals the secret of design.

To purchase this title and other in the Construction and Design Manual series, visit Dom Publishers . "Practice-related information, exemplary buildings and inspiration in an attractive design and a handy format: with its didactic, user-oriented concept, the Construction and Design Manual series offers everything architects need for construction project solutions."

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Design patent application guide

A guide to filing a design patent application.

U.S. Department of Commerce Patent and Trademark Office Mail Stop Comments—Patents

Definition of a Design

Types of designs and modified forms.

Difference Between Design and Utility Patents

Improper Subject Matter for Design Patents

Invention development organizations, elements of a design patent application, the preamble, the figure descriptions, a single claim.

Drawings or Black & White Photographs

Color Drawings or Photographs

Surface Shading and Drafting Symbols

Broken Lines

The oath or declaration, disclosure examples, the design patent application process, drawing examples, symbols for draftsmen, patent laws that apply to design patent applications.

Rules That Apply to the Drawings of a Design Patent Application

Sample Specification

A design consists of the visual ornamental characteristics embodied in, or applied to, an article of manufacture. Since a design is manifested in appearance, the subject matter of a design patent application may relate to the configuration or shape of an article, to the surface ornamentation applied to an article, or to the combination of configuration and surface ornamentation. A design for surface ornamentation is inseparable from the article to which it is applied and cannot exist alone. It must be a definite pattern of surface ornamentation, applied to an article of manufacture.

In discharging its patent-related duties, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO or Office) examines applications and grants patents on inventions when applicants are entitled to them. The patent law provides for the granting of design patents to any person who has invented any new, original and ornamental design for an article of manufacture. A design patent protects only the appearance of the article and not structural or utilitarian features. The principal statutes (United States Code) governing design patents are:  

35 U.S.C. 171

35 U.S.C. 172

35 U.S.C. 173

35 U.S.C. 102

35 U.S.C. 103

35 U.S.C. 112

35 U.S.C. 132

The rules (Code of Federal Regulations) pertaining to the drawing disclosure of a design patent application are:  

37 CFR § 1.84

37 CFR § 1.152

37 CFR § 1.121

The following additional rules have been referred to in this guide:

37 CFR § 1.3

37 CFR § 1.63

37 CFR § 1.76

37 CFR § 1.153

37 CFR § 1.154

37 CFR § 1.155

A copy of these laws and rules is included at the end of this guide.

The practice and procedures relating to design applications are set forth in chapter 1500 of the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP). Inquiries relating to the sale of the MPEP should be directed to the Superintendent of Documents, United States Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. Telephone: 202.512.1800.

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An ornamental design may be embodied in an entire article or only a portion of an article, or may be ornamentation applied to an article. If a design is directed to just surface ornamentation, it must be shown applied to an article in the drawings, and the article must be shown in broken lines, as it forms no part of the claimed design.

A design patent application may only have a single claim (37 CFR § 1.153). Designs that are independent and distinct must be filed in separate applications since they cannot be supported by a single claim. Designs are independent if there is no apparent relationship between two or more articles. For example, a pair of eyeglasses and a door handle are independent articles and must be claimed in separate applications. Designs are considered distinct if they have different shapes and appearances even though they are related articles. For example, two vases having different surface ornamentation creating distinct appearances must be claimed in separate applications. However, modified forms, or embodiments of a single design concept may be filed in one application. For example, vases with only minimal configuration differences may be considered a single design concept and both embodiments may be included in a single application.

The Difference Between Design and Utility Patents

In general terms, a "utility patent" protects the way an article is used and works (35 U.S.C. 101), while a "design patent" protects the way an article looks (35 U.S.C. 171). Both design and utility patents may be obtained on an article if invention resides both in its utility and ornamental appearance. While utility and design patents afford legally separate protection, the utility and ornamentality of an article are not easily separable. Articles of manufacture may possess both functional and ornamental characteristics.

A design for an article of manufacture that is dictated primarily by the function of the article lacks ornamentality and is not proper statutory subject matter under 35 U.S.C. 171. Specifically, if at the time the design was created, there was no unique or distinctive shape or appearance to the article not dictated by the function that it performs, the design lacks ornamentality and is not proper subject matter. In addition, 35 U.S.C. 171 requires that a design to be patentable must be "original." Clearly a design that simulates a well-known or naturally occurring object or person is not original as required by the statute. Furthermore, subject matter that could be considered offensive to any race, religion, sex, ethnic group, or nationality is not proper subject matter for a design patent application (35 U.S.C. 171 and 37 CFR § 1.3).

Invention Development Organizations (IDO) are private and public consulting and marketing businesses that exist to help inventors bring their inventions to market, or to otherwise profit from their ideas. While many of these organizations are legitimate, some are not. Be wary of any IDO that is willing to promote your invention or product without making a detailed inquiry into the merits of your idea and giving you a full range of options which may or may not include the pursuit of patent protection. Some IDOs will automatically recommend that you pursue patent protection for your idea with little regard for the value of any patent that may ultimately issue. For example, an IDO may recommend that you add ornamentation to your product in order to render it eligible for a design patent, but not really explain to you the purpose or effect of such a change. Because design patents protect only the appearance of an article of manufacture, it is possible that minimal differences between similar designs can render each patentable. Therefore, even though you may ultimately receive a design patent for your product, the protection afforded by such a patent may be somewhat limited. Finally, you should also be aware of the broad distinction between utility and design patents, and realize that a design patent may not give you the protection desired.

The elements of a design patent application should include the following:

• Preamble, stating name of the applicant, title of the design, and a brief description of the nature and intended use of the article in which the design is embodied;
• Cross-reference to related applications (unless included in the application data sheet).
• Statement regarding federally sponsored research or development.
• Description of the figure(s) of the drawing;
• Feature description;
• A single claim;
• Drawings or photographs;
• Executed oath or declaration.

In addition, the filing fee, search fee, and examination fee are also required. If applicant is a small entity, (an independent inventor, a small business concern, or a non-profit organization), these fees are reduced by half.

The Preamble, if included, should state the name of the applicant, the title of the design, and a brief description of the nature and intended use of the article in which the design is embodied. All information contained in the preamble will be printed on the patent, should the claimed design be deemed patentable.

The Title of the design must identify the article in which the design is embodied by the name generally known and used by the public. Marketing designations are improper as titles and should not be used. A title descriptive of the actual article aids the examiner in developing a complete field of search of the prior art. It further aids in the proper assignment of new applications to the appropriate class, subclass, and patent examiner, as well as the proper classification of the patent upon allowance of the application. It also helps the public in understanding the nature and use of the article embodying the design after the patent has been published. Thus, applicants are encouraged to provide a specific and descriptive title.

The Figure Descriptions indicate what each view of the drawings represents, i.e., front elevation, top plan, perspective view, etc.

Any description of the design in the specification, other than a brief description of the drawing, is generally not necessary since, as a general rule, the drawing is the design's best description. However, while not required, a special description is not prohibited.

In addition to the figure descriptions, the following types of statements are permissible in the specification:

• A description of the appearance of portions of the claimed design which are not illustrated in the drawing disclosure (i.e., "the right side elevational view is a mirror image of the left side").
• Description disclaiming portions of the article not shown, that form no part of the claimed design.
• Statement indicating that any broken line illustration of environmental structure in the drawing is not part of the design sought to be patented.
• Description denoting the nature and environmental use of the claimed design, if not included in the preamble.

A design patent application may only include a single claim. The claim defines the design which applicant wishes to patent, in terms of the article in which it is embodied or applied. The claim must be in formal terms to "The ornamental design for (the article which embodies the design or to which it is applied) as shown." The description of the article in the claim should be consistent in terminology with the title of the invention.

When there is a properly included special description of the design in the specification, or a proper showing of modified forms of the design, or other descriptive matter has been included in the specification, the words "and described" should be added to the claim following the term "shown." The claim should then read "The ornamental design for (the article which embodies the design or to which it is applied) as shown and described."

Drawings or Black and White Photographs

The drawing disclosure is the most important element of the application. Every design patent application must include either a drawing or a black and white photograph of the claimed design. As the drawing or photograph constitutes the entire visual disclosure of the claim, it is of utmost importance that the drawing or photograph be clear and complete, that nothing regarding the design sought to be patented is left to conjecture. The design drawing or photograph must comply with the disclosure requirements of 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph. To meet the requirements of 35 U.S.C. 112, the drawings or photographs must include a sufficient number of views to constitute a complete disclosure of the appearance of the design claimed.

Drawings are normally required to be in black ink on white paper. Black and white photographs, in lieu of drawings, are permitted subject to the requirements of 37 CFR §1.84(b)(1) and §1.152. Applicant should refer to these rules, included at the end of this guide. These rules set forth in detail the requirements for proper drawings in a design patent application.

Black and white photographs submitted on double weight photographic paper must have the drawing figure number entered on the face of the photograph. Photographs mounted on Bristol board may have the figure number shown in black ink on the Bristol board, proximate the corresponding photograph.

Black and white photographs and ink drawings must not be combined in a formal submission of the visual disclosure of the claimed design in one application. The introduction of both photographs and ink drawings in a design application would result in a high probability of inconsistencies between corresponding elements on the ink drawings as compared with the photographs. Photographs submitted in lieu of ink drawings must not disclose environmental structure but must be limited to the claimed design itself.

Color Drawings or Color Photographs

The Office will accept color drawings or photographs in design patent applications only after the granting of a petition filed under 37 CFR §1.84(a)(2), explaining why the color drawings or photographs are necessary. Any such petition must include the fee set forth in 37 CFR § 1.17(h), three sets of color drawings or photographs, and the specification must contain the following language before the description of the drawings:

"The patent or application file contains a least one drawing executed in color. Copies of this patent or patent application publication with color drawing(s) will be provided by the Office upon request and payment of the necessary fee."

If color photographs are submitted as informal drawings and the applicant does not consider the color to be part of the claimed design, a disclaimer should be added to the specification as follows: "The color shown on the claimed design forms no part thereof." Color will be considered an integral part of the disclosed and claimed design in the absence of a disclaimer filed with the original application. A disclaimer may only be used when filing color photographs as informal drawings, as 37 CFR §1.152 requires that the disclosure in formal photographs be limited to the design for the article claimed.

The drawings or photographs should contain a sufficient number of views to completely disclose the appearance of the claimed design, i.e., front, rear, right and left sides, top and bottom. While not required, it is suggested that perspective views be submitted to clearly show the appearance and shape of three-dimensional designs. If a perspective view is submitted, the surfaces shown would normally not be required to be illustrated in other views if these surfaces are clearly understood and fully disclosed in the perspective.

Views that are merely duplicates of other views of the design or that are merely flat and include no ornamentality may be omitted from the drawing if the specification makes this explicitly clear. For example, if the left and right sides of a design are identical or a mirror image, a view should be provided of one side and a statement made in the drawing description that the other side is identical or a mirror image. If the bottom of the design is flat, a view of the bottom may be omitted if the figure descriptions include a statement that the bottom is flat and unornamented. The term "unornamented" should not be used to describe visible surfaces that include structure that is clearly not flat. In some cases, the claim may be directed to an entire article, but because all sides of the article may not be visible during normal use, it is not necessary to disclose them. A sectional view which more clearly brings out elements of the design is permissible, however a sectional view presented to show functional features, or interior structure not forming part of the claimed design, is neither required nor permitted.

Surface Shading

The drawing should be provided with appropriate surface shading which shows clearly the character and contour of all surfaces of any three-dimensional aspects of the design. Surface shading is also necessary to distinguish between any open and solid areas of the design. Solid black surface shading is not permitted except when used to represent the color black as well as color contrast. Lack of appropriate surface shading in the drawing as filed may render the shape and contour of the design nonenabling under 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph. Additionally, if the shape of the design is not evident from the disclosure as filed, addition of surface shading after filing may be viewed as new matter. New matter is anything that is added to, or from, the claim, drawings or specification, that was neither shown nor suggested in the original application (see 35 U.S.C. 132 and 37 CFR § 1.121, at the end of this guide).

A broken line disclosure is understood to be for illustrative purposes only and forms no part of the claimed design. Structure that is not part of the claimed design, but is considered necessary to show the environment in which the design is used, may be represented in the drawing by broken lines. This includes any portion of an article in which the design is embodied or applied to that is not considered part of the claimed design. When the claim is directed to just surface ornamentation for an article, the article in which it is embodied must be shown in broken lines.

In general, when broken lines are used, they should not intrude upon or cross the showing of the claimed design and should not be of heavier weight than the lines used in depicting the claimed design. Where a broken line showing of environmental structure must necessarily cross or intrude upon the representation of the claimed design and obscures a clear understanding of the design, such an illustration should be included as a separate figure in addition to the other figures which fully disclose the subject matter of the design.

The oath or declaration required of the applicant must comply with the requirements set forth in 37 CFR §1.63.

So that the applicant will better understand what constitutes a complete disclosure, examples of drawing disclosures and their accompanying specifications are provided on the following pages.

Disclosure Of The Entire Article

I, John Doe, have invented a new design for a jewelry cabinet, as set forth in the following specification. The claimed jewelry cabinet is used to store jewelry and could sit on a bureau.

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of a jewelry cabinet showing my new design;

Fig. 2 is a rear elevational view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a left side elevational view thereof;

Fig. 4 is a right side elevational view thereof;

Fig. 5 is a top plan view thereof; and

Fig. 6 is a bottom plan view thereof.

I claim: the ornamental design for a jewelry cabinet as shown.

Disclosure of only the surfaces of an article that are visible during use (no bottom view or description necessary)

I, John Doe, have invented a new design for a jewelry cabinet, as set forth in the following specification. The claimed jewelry cabinet is used for storing jewelry and could sit on a bureau.

Fig. 5 is a top plan view thereof.

Disclosure of only the surfaces of an article that are visible during use - The rear view disclosed by description

Fig. 2 is a left side elevational view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a right side elevational view thereof; and

Fig. 4 is a top plan view thereof.

The rear of the jewelry cabinet is flat and unornamented.

I claim: the ornamental design for a jewelry cabinet as shown and described.

Disclosure of a surface pattern as claimed design, applied to an article

I, John Doe, have invented a new design for a surface pattern applied to a jewelry cabinet, as set forth in the following specification.

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of a surface pattern applied to a jewelry cabinet showing my new design;

Fig. 2 is a left side elevational view thereof, the right side being a mirror image.

The jewelry cabinet is shown in broken lines for illustrative purposes only and forms no part of the claimed design.

I claim: the ornamental design for a surface pattern applied to a jewelry cabinet as shown and described.

The preparation of a design patent application and the conducting of the proceedings in the USPTO to obtain the patent is an undertaking requiring the knowledge of patent law and rules and Patent and Trademark Office practice and procedures. A patent attorney or agent specially trained in this field is best able to secure the greatest patent protection to which applicant is entitled. It would be prudent to seek the services of a registered patent attorney or agent. Representation, however, is not required. A knowledgeable applicant may successfully prosecute his or her own application. However, while persons not skilled in this work may obtain a patent in many cases, there is no assurance that the patent obtained would adequately protect the particular design.

Of primary importance in a design patent application is the drawing disclosure, which illustrates the design being claimed. Unlike a utility application, where the "claim" describes the invention in a lengthy written explanation, the claim in a design patent application protects the overall visual appearance of the design, "described" in the drawings. It is essential that the applicant present a set of drawings (or photographs) of the highest quality which conform to the rules and standards which are reproduced in this guide. Changes to these drawings after the application has been filed, may introduce new matter, which is not permitted by law (35 U.S.C. 132). It is in applicant's best interest to ensure that the drawing disclosure is clear and complete prior to filing the application, since an incomplete or poorly prepared drawing may result in a fatally defective disclosure which cannot become a patent. It is recommended that applicant retain the services of a professional draftsperson who specializes in preparing design patent drawings. Examples of acceptable drawings and drawing disclosures are included in this Guide so that applicant will have some idea of what is required and can prepare the drawings accordingly.

Filing An Application

In addition to the drawing disclosure, certain other information is necessary. While no specific format is required, it is strongly suggested that applicant follow the formats presented to ensure that the application is complete.

When a complete design patent application, along with the appropriate filing fee, is received by the Office, it is assigned an Application Number and a Filing Date. A "Filing Receipt" containing this information is sent to the applicant. The application is then assigned to an examiner. Applications are examined in order of their filing date.

Examination

The actual "examination" entails checking for compliance with formalities, ensuring completeness of the drawing disclosure and a comparison of the claimed subject matter with the "prior art." "Prior art" consists of issued patents and published materials. If the claimed subject matter is found to be patentable, the application will be "allowed," and instructions will be provided to applicant for completing the process to permit issuance as a patent.

The examiner may reject the claim in the application if the disclosure cannot be understood or is incomplete, or if a reference or combination of references found in the prior art, shows the claimed design to be unpatentable. The examiner will then issue an Office action detailing the rejection and addressing the substantive matters which effect patentability.

This Office action may also contain suggestions by the examiner for amendments to the application. Applicant should keep this Office action for his or her files, and not send it back to the Office.

If, after receiving an Office action, applicant elects to continue prosecution of the application, a timely reply to the action must be submitted. This reply should include a request for reconsideration or further examination of the claim, along with any amendments desired by the applicant, and must be in writing. The reply must distinctly and specifically point out the supposed errors in the Office action and must address every objection and/or rejection in the action. If the examiner has rejected the claim over prior art, a general statement by the applicant that the claim is patentable, without specifically pointing out how the design is patentable over the prior art, does not comply with the rules.

In all cases where the examiner has said that a reply to a requirement is necessary, or where the examiner has indicated patentable subject matter, the reply must comply with the requirements set forth by the examiner, or specifically argue each requirement as to why compliance should not be required.

In any communication with the Office, applicant should include the following items:

• Application number (checked for accuracy).
• Group art unit number (copied from filing receipt or the most recent Office action).
• Filing date.
• Name of the examiner who prepared the most recent Office action.
• Title of invention.

It is applicant's responsibility to make sure that the reply is received by the Office prior to the expiration of the designated time period set for reply. This time period is set to run from the "Date Mailed," which is indicated on the first page of the Office action. If the reply is not received within the designated time period, the application will be considered abandoned. In the event that applicant is unable to reply within the time period set in the Office action, abandonment may be prevented if a reply is filed within six months from the mail date of the Office action provided a petition for extension of time and the fee set forth in 37 CFR § 1.17(a) are filed. The fee is determined by the amount of time requested, and increases as the length of time increases. These fees are set by Rule and could change at any time. An "Extension of Time" does not have to be obtained prior to the submission of a reply to an Office action; it may be mailed along with the reply. See insert for schedule of current fees. Note: an extension of time cannot be obtained when responding to a "Notice of Allowance and Fee(s) Due."

To ensure that a time period set for reply to an Office action is not missed; a "Certificate of Mailing" should be attached to the reply. This "Certificate" establishes that the reply is being mailed on a given date. It also establishes that the reply is timely, if it was mailed before the period for reply had expired, and if it is mailed with the United States Postal Service. A "Certificate of Mailing" is not the same as "Certified Mail." A suggested format for a Certificate of Mailing is as follows:

"I hereby certify that this correspondence is being deposited with the United States Postal Service as first class mail in an envelope addressed to: Commissioner for Patents, PO Box 1450, Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450, on (DATE MAILED)"

(Name - Typed or Printed)  __________________________________

Signature__________________________________

Date______________________________________

If a receipt for any paper filed in the USPTO is desired, applicant should include a stamped, self-addressed postcard, which lists, on the message side applicant's name and address, the application number, and filing date, the types of papers submitted with the reply (i.e., 1 sheet of drawings, 2 pages of amendments, 1 page of an oath/declaration, etc.) This postcard will be stamped with the date of receipt by the mailroom and returned to applicant. This postcard will be applicant's evidence that the reply was received by the Office on that date.

If applicant changes his or her mailing address after filing an application, the Office must be notified in writing of the new address. Failure to do so will result in future communications being mailed to the old address, and there is no guarantee that these communications will be forwarded to applicant's new address. Applicant's failure to receive, and properly reply to these Office communications will result in the application being held abandoned. Notification of "Change of Address" should be made by separate letter, and a separate notification should be filed for each application.

Reconsideration

Upon submission of a reply to an Office action, the application will be reconsidered and further examined in view of applicant's remarks and any amendments included with the reply. The examiner will then either withdraw the rejection and allow the application or, if not persuaded by the remarks and/or amendments submitted, repeat the rejection and make it Final. Applicant may file an appeal with the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) after given a final rejection or after the claim has been rejected twice. Applicant may also file a new application prior to the abandonment of the original application, claiming benefit of the earlier filing date. This will allow continued prosecution of the claim.

The two types of shading commonly employed in design patent application drawings are straight-line surface shading and stippling. Individually or in combination, they can effectively represent the character and contour of most surfaces.

Straight-line Surface Shading

Combination of straight line shading and stippling.

Note that both stippling and straight-line surface shading, while permissible on the same object to show surface contrast, should not be used together on the same surface.

Transparent Materials

Note that elements visible behind transparent surfaces should be shown in light, full lines, not broken lines.

Broken Line Disclosure

Broken lines may be used to show environment and boundaries that form no part of the claimed design.

Exploded View

An exploded view is only supplementary to a fully assembled view. A bracket must be employed to show the association of elements.

Set of Game Components- Fully Assembled View:

Alternate positions.

The alternate positions of a design, or an element of the design, must be shown in separate views.

Article Shown Broken Away

A separation and a bracket may be used in an enlarged view when the full length of the article is shown in another view. Alternatively, when the article is consistently shown in the views with a break, the claim will be understood to be directed only to the design for the portions of the molding that are shown. A description in the specification must explain that the appearance of any portion of the article between the break lines forms no part of the claimed design.

Cross-sectional View

Cross-sections may be employed to clarify the disclosure and to minimize the number of views.

Multiple Embodiments

Multiple embodiments of a single concept may be filed in one design application, so long as their appearance and shape are similar, as shown below.

Graphical symbols for conventional elements may be used on the drawing when appropriate, subject to approval by the Office.

NOTES: In general, in lieu of a symbol, a conventional element, combination or circuit may be shown by an appropriately labeled rectangle, square or circle; abbreviations should not be used unless their meaning is evident and not confusing with the abbreviations used in the suggested symbols.

35 U.S.C. 102 Conditions for patentability; novelty and loss of right to patent

A person shall be entitled to a patent unless -

(a) the invention was known or used by others in this country, or patented or described in a printed publication in this or a foreign country, before the invention thereof by the applicant for patent, or

(b) the invention was patented or described in a printed publication in this or a foreign country or in public use or on sale in this country, more than one year prior to the date of the application for patent in the United States,

(c) he has abandoned the invention,

(d) the invention was first patented or caused to be patented, or was the subject of an inventor's certificate, by the applicant or his legal representatives or assigns in a foreign country prior to the date of the application for patent in this country on an application for patent or inventor's certificate filed more than twelve months before the filing of the application in the United States,

(e) the invention was described in - (1) an application for patent, published under section 122(b), by another filed in the United States before the invention by the applicant for patent or (2) a patent granted on an application for patent by another filed in the United States before the invention by the applicant for patent, except that an international application filed under the treaty defined in section 351(a) shall have the effects for the purposes of this subsection of an application filed in the United States only if the international application designated the United States and was published under Article 21(2) of such treaty in the English language; or

(f) he did not himself invent the subject matter sought to be patented,

(g) (1) during the course of an interference conducted under section 135 or section 291, another inventor involved therein establishes, to the extent permitted in section 104, that before such person's invention thereof the invention was made by such other inventor and not abandoned, suppressed, or concealed, or (2) before such person's invention thereof, the invention was made in this country by another inventor who had not abandoned, suppressed, or concealed it. In determining priority of invention under this subsection, there shall be considered not only the respective dates of conception and reduction to practice of the invention, but also the reasonable diligence of one who was first to conceive and last to reduce to practice, from a time prior to conception by the other.

35 U.S.C. 103 Conditions for patentability; non-obvious subject matter

(a) A patent may not be obtained though the invention is not identically disclosed or described as set forth in section 102 of this title, if the differences between the subject matter sought to be patented and the prior art are such that the subject matter as a whole would have been obvious at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which said subject matter pertains. Patentability shall not be negatived by the manner in which the invention was made.

(b) (1) Notwithstanding subsection (a), and upon timely election by the applicant for patent to proceed under this subsection, a biotechnological process using or resulting in a composition of matter that is novel under section 102 and nonobvious under subsection (a) of this section shall be considered nonobvious if-

(A) claims to the process and the composition of matter are contained in either the same application for patent or in separate applications having the same effective filing date;

(B) the composition of matter, and the process at the time it was invented, were owned by the same person or subject to an obligation of assignment to the same person.

(2) A patent issued on a process under paragraph (1)-

(A) shall also contain the claims to the composition of matter used in or made by that process,

(B) shall, if such composition of matter is claimed in another patent, be set to expire on the same date as such other patent, notwithstanding section 154.

(3) For purposes of paragraph (1), the term "biotechnological process" means-

(A) a process of genetically altering or otherwise inducing a single- or multi-celled organism to-

(i) express an exogenous nucleotide sequence,

(ii) inhibit, eliminate, augment, or alter expression of an endogenous nucleotide sequence,

(iii) express a specific physiological characteristic not naturally associated with said organism;

(B) cell fusion procedures yielding a cell line that expresses a specific protein, such as a monoclonal antibody;

(C) a method of using a product produced by a process defined by subparagraph (A) or (B), or a combination of subparagraphs (A) and (B).

(c)(1) Subject matter developed by another person, which qualifies as prior art only under one or more of subsections (e), (f), and (g) of section 102 of this title, shall not preclude patentability under this section where the subject matter and the claimed invention were, at the time the invention was made, owned by the same person or subject to an obligation of assignment to the same person.

(2) For purposes of this subsection, subject matter developed by another person and a claimed invention shall be deemed to have been owned by the same person or subject to an obligation of assignment to the same person if-

(A) the claimed invention was made by or on behalf of parties to a joint research agreement that was in effect on or before the date the claimed invention was made;

(B) the claimed invention was made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of the joint research agreement; and

(C) the application for patent for the claimed invention discloses or is amended to disclose the names of the parties to the joint research agreement.

(3) For purposes of paragraph (2), the term "joint research agreement"means a written contract, grant, or cooperative agreement entered into by two or more persons or entities for the performance of experimental, developmental, or research work in the field of the claimed invention.

35 U.S.C. 112 Specification

The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.

The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter, which the applicant regards as his invention.

A claim may be written in independent or, if the nature of the case admits, in dependent or multiple dependent form.

Subject to the following paragraph, a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.

A claim in multiple dependent form shall contain a reference, in the alternative only, to more than one claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A multiple dependent claim shall not serve as a basis for any other multiple dependent claim. A multiple dependent claim shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the particular claim in relation to which it is being considered.

An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.

35 U.S.C. 132 Notice of rejection; reexamination

(a) Whenever, on examination, any claim for a patent is rejected, or any objection or requirement made, the Director shall notify the applicant thereof, stating the reasons for such rejection, or objection or requirement, together with such information and references as may be useful in judging of the propriety of continuing the prosecution of his application; and if after receiving such notice, the applicant persists in his claim for a patent, with or without amendment, the application shall be reexamined. No amendment shall introduce new matter into the disclosure of the invention.

(b) The Director shall prescribe regulations to provide for the continued examination of applications for patent at the request of the applicant. The Director may establish appropriate fees for such continued examination and shall provide a 50 percent reduction in such fees for small entities that qualify for reduced fees under section 41(h)(1) of this title.

35 U.S.C. 171 Patents for designs

Whoever invents any new, original, and ornamental design for an article of manufacture may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.

The provisions of this title relating to patents for inventions shall apply to patents for designs, except as otherwise provided.

35 U.S.C. 172 Right of priority

The right of priority provided for by subsections (a) through (d) of section 119 of this title and the time specified in section 102(d) shall be six months in the case of designs. The right of priority provided for by section 119(e) of this title shall not apply to designs.

35 U.S.C. 173 Term of design patent

Patents for designs shall be granted for the term of fifteen years from the date of grant.

Patent Rules That Apply to Design Patent Applications

37 cfr 1.3 business to be conducted with decorum and courtesy.

Applicants and their attorneys or agents are required to conduct their business with the Patent and Trademark Office with decorum and courtesy. Papers presented in violation of this requirement will be submitted to the Director and will not be entered. Complaints against examiners and other employees must be made in correspondence separate from other papers.

37 CFR 1.63 Oath or declaration

(a) An oath or declaration filed under § 1.51(b)(2), as a part of a nonprovisional application must:

(1) Be executed, i.e., signed, in accordance with either § 1.66 or § 1.68. There is no minimum age for a person to be qualified to sign, but the person must be competent to sign, i.e., understand the document that the person is signing;

(2) Identify each inventor by full name, including the family name, and at least one given name without abbreviation together with any other given name or initial;

(3) Identify the country of citizenship of each inventor;

(4) State that the person making the oath or declaration believes the named inventor or inventors to be the original and first inventor or inventors of the subject matter which is claimed and for which a patent is sought.

(b) In addition to meeting the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section, the oath or declaration must also:

(1) Identify the application to which it is directed;

(2) State that the person making the oath or declaration has reviewed and understands the contents of the application, including the claims, as amended by any amendment specifically referred to in the oath or declaration;

(3) State that the person making the oath or declaration acknowledges the duty to disclose to the Office all information known to the person to be material to patentability as defined in § 1.56.

(c) Unless such information is supplied on an application data sheet in accordance with § 1.76, the oath, or declaration must also identify:

(1) The mailing address, and the residence if an inventor lives at a location which is different from where the inventor customarily receives mail, of each inventor;

(2) Any foreign application for patent (or inventor's certificate) for which a claim for priority is made pursuant to § 1.55, and any foreign application having a filing date before that of the application on which priority is claimed, by specifying the application number, country, day, month, and year of its filing.

(d) (1) A newly executed oath or declaration is not required under § 1.51(b)(2) and § 1.53(f) in a continuation or divisional application, provided that:

(i) The prior nonprovisional application contained an oath or declaration as prescribed by paragraphs (a) through (c) of this section;

(ii) The continuation or divisional application was filed by all or by fewer than all of the inventors named in the prior application;

(iii) The specification and drawings filed in the continuation or divisional application contain no matter that would have been new matter in the prior application;

(iv) A copy of the executed oath or declaration filed in the prior application, showing the signature or an indication thereon that it was signed, is submitted for the continuation or divisional application.

(2) The copy of the executed oath or declaration submitted under this paragraph for a continuation or divisional application must be accompanied by a statement requesting the deletion of the name or names of the person or persons who are not inventors in the continuation or divisional application.

(3) Where the executed oath or declaration of which a copy is submitted for a continuation or divisional application was originally filed in a prior application accorded status under § 1.47, the copy of the executed oath or declaration for such prior application must be accompanied by:

(i) A copy of the decision granting a petition to accord § 1.47 status to the prior application, unless all inventors or legal representatives have filed an oath or declaration to join in an application accorded status under § 1.47 of which the continuation or divisional application claims a benefit under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, or 365(c);

(ii) If one or more inventor(s) or legal representative(s) who refused to join in the prior application or could not be found or reached has subsequently joined in the prior application or another application of which the continuation or divisional application claims a benefit under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, or 365(c), a copy of the subsequently executed oath(s) or declaration(s) filed by the inventor or legal representative to join in the application.

(4) Where the power of attorney or correspondence address was changed during the prosecution of the prior application, the change in power of attorney (or authorization of agent) or correspondence address must be identified in the continuation or divisional application. Otherwise, the Office may not recognize in the continuation or divisional application the change of power of attorney or correspondence address during the prosecution of the prior application.

(5) A newly executed oath or declaration must be filed in a continuation or divisional application naming an inventor not named in the prior application.

(e) A newly executed oath or declaration must be filed in any continuation-in-part application, which application may name all, more, or fewer than all of the inventors named in the prior application.

37 CFR 1.76 Application data sheet

(a) Application data sheet. An application data sheet is a sheet or sheets, that may be voluntarily submitted in either provisional or nonprovisional applications, which contains bibliographic data, arranged in a format specified by the Office. An application data sheet must be titled "Application Data Sheet" and must contain all of the section headings listed in paragraph (b) of this section, with any appropriate data for each section heading. If an application data sheet is provided, the application data sheet is part of the provisional or nonprovisional application for which it has been submitted.

(b) Bibliographic data. Bibliographic data as used in paragraph (a) of this section includes:

(1) Applicant information. This information includes the name, residence, mailing address, and citizenship of each applicant (§ 1.41(b)). The name of each applicant must include the family name, and at least one given name without abbreviation together with any other given name or initial. If the applicant is not an inventor, this information also includes the applicant' s authority (§§ 1.42, 1.43, and 1.47) to apply for the patent on behalf of the inventor.

(2) Correspondence information. This information includes the correspondence address, which may be indicated by reference to a customer number, to which correspondence is to be directed (see § 1.33(a)).

(3) Application information. This information includes the title of the invention, a suggested classification, by class and subclass, the Technology Center to which the subject matter of the invention is assigned, the total number of drawing sheets, a suggested drawing figure for publication (in a nonprovisional application), any docket number assigned to the application, the type of application (e.g., utility, plant, design, reissue, provisional), whether the application discloses any significant part of the subject matter of an application under a secrecy order pursuant to § 5.2 of this chapter (see § 5.2(c)), and, for plant applications, the Latin name of the genus and species of the plant claimed, as well as the variety denomination. The suggested classification and Technology Center information should be supplied for provisional applications whether or not claims are present. If claims are not present in a provisional application, the suggested classification and Technology Center should be based upon the disclosure.

(4) Representative information. This information includes the registration number of each practitioner having a power of attorney in the application (preferably by reference to a customer number). Providing this information in the application data sheet does not constitute a power of attorney in the application (see § 1.32).

(5) Domestic priority information. This information includes the application number, the filing date, the status (including patent number if available), and relationship of each application for which a benefit is claimed under 35 U.S.C. 119(e), 120, 121, or 365(c). Providing this information in the application data sheet constitutes the specific reference required by 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or 120, and § 1.78(a)(2) or § 1.78(a)(4), and need not otherwise be made part of the specification.

(6) Foreign priority information. This information includes the application number, country, and filing date of each foreign application for which priority is claimed, as well as any foreign application having a filing date before that of the application for which priority is claimed. Providing this information in the application data sheet constitutes the claim for priority as required by 35 U.S.C. 119(b) and § 1.55(a).

(7) Assignee information. This information includes the name (either person or juristic entity) and address of the assignee of the entire right, title, and interest in an application. Providing this information in the application data sheet does not substitute for compliance with any requirement of part 3 of this chapter to have an assignment recorded by the Office.

(c) Supplemental application data sheets. Supplemental application data sheets:

(1) May be subsequently supplied prior to payment of the issue fee either to correct or update information in a previously submitted application data sheet, or an oath or declaration under § 1.63 or § 1.67, except that inventorship changes are governed by § 1.48, correspondence changes are governed by § 1.33(a), and citizenship changes are governed by § 1.63 or § 1.67;

(2) Must be titled "Supplemental Application Data Sheet," include all of the section headings listed in paragraph (b) of this section, include all appropriate data for each section heading, and must identify the information that is being changed, preferably with underlining for insertions, and strike-through or brackets for text removed.

(d) Inconsistencies between application data sheet and other documents. For inconsistencies between information that is supplied by both an application data sheet under this section and other documents.

(1) The latest submitted information will govern notwithstanding whether supplied by an application data sheet, an amendment to the specification, a designation of a correspondence address, or by a § 1.63 or § 1.67 oath or declaration, except as provided by paragraph (d)(3) of this section;

(2) The information in the application data sheet will govern when the inconsistent information is supplied at the same time by an amendment to the specification, a designation of correspondence address, or a § 1.63 or § 1.67 oath or declaration, except as provided by paragraph (d)(3) of this section;

(3) The oath or declaration under § 1.63 or § 1.67 governs inconsistencies with the application data sheet in the naming of inventors (§ 1.41(a)(1)) and setting forth their citizenship (35 U.S.C. 115);

(4) The Office will capture bibliographic information from the application data sheet (notwithstanding whether an oath or declaration governs the information). Thus, the Office shall generally, for example, not look to an oath or declaration under § 1.63 to see if the bibliographic information contained therein is consistent with the bibliographic information captured from an application data sheet (whether the oath or declaration is submitted prior to or subsequent to the application data sheet). Captured bibliographic information derived from an application data sheet containing errors may be corrected if applicant submits a request therefor and a supplemental application data sheet.

37 CFR 1.84 Standards for drawings

(a) Drawings. There are two acceptable categories for presenting drawings in utility and design patent applications.

(1) Black ink. Black and white drawings are normally required. India ink, or its equivalent that secures solid black lines, must be used for drawings;

(2) Color. On rare occasions, color drawings may be necessary as the only practical medium by which to disclose the subject matter sought to be patented in a utility or design patent application or the subject matter of a statutory invention registration. The color drawings must be of sufficient quality such that all details in the drawings are reproducible in black and white in the printed patent. Color drawings are not permitted in international applications (see PCT Rule 11.13), or in an application, or copy thereof, submitted under the Office electronic filing system. The Office will accept color drawings in utility or design patent applications and statutory invention registrations only after granting a petition filed under this paragraph explaining why the color drawings are necessary. Any such petition must include the following:

(i) The fee set forth in § 1.17(h);

(ii) Three (3) sets of color drawings;

(iii) An amendment to the specification to insert (unless the specification contains or has been previously amended to contain) the following language as the first paragraph of the brief description of the drawings:

The patent or application file contains at least one drawing executed in color. Copies of this patent or patent application publication with color drawing(s) will be provided by the Office upon request and payment of the necessary fee.

(b) Photographs.

(1) Black and white. Photographs, including photocopies of photographs, are not ordinarily permitted in utility and design patent applications. The Office will accept photographs in utility and design patent applications, however, if photographs are the only practicable medium for illustrating the claimed invention. For example, photographs or photomicrographs of: electrophoresis gels, blots (e.g., immunological, western, Southern, and northern), auto- radiographs, cell cultures (stained and unstained), histological tissue cross sections (stained and unstained), animals, plants, in vivo imaging, thin layer chromatography plates, crystalline structures, and, in a design patent application, ornamental effects, are acceptable. If the subject matter of the application admits of illustration by a drawing, the examiner may require a drawing in place of the photograph. The photographs must be of sufficient quality so that all details in the photographs are reproducible in the printed patent.

(2) Color photographs. Color photographs will be accepted in utility and design patent applications if the conditions for accepting color drawings and black and white photographs have been satisfied. See paragraphs (a)(2) and (b)(1) of this section.

(c) Identification of drawings. Identifying indicia, if provided, should include the title of the invention, inventor's name, and application number, or docket number (if any) if an application number has not been assigned to the application. If this information is provided, it must be placed on the front of each sheet and centered within the top margin.

(d) Graphic forms in drawings. Chemical or mathematical formulae, tables, and waveforms may be submitted as drawings and are subject to the same requirements as drawings. Each chemical or mathematical formula must be labeled as a separate figure, using brackets when necessary, to show that information is properly integrated. Each group of waveforms must be presented as a single figure, using a common vertical axis with time extending along the horizontal axis. Each individual waveform discussed in the specification must be identified with a separate letter designation adjacent to the vertical axis.

(e) Type of paper. Drawings submitted to the Office must be made on paper, which is flexible, strong, white, smooth, non-shiny, and durable. All sheets must be reasonably free from cracks, creases, and folds. Only one side of the sheet may be used for the drawing. Each sheet must be reasonably free from erasures and must be free from alterations, overwritings, and interlineations. Photographs must be developed on paper meeting the sheet-size requirements of paragraph (f) of this section and the margin requirements of paragraph (g) of this section. See paragraph (b) of this section for other requirements for photographs.

(f) Size of paper. All drawing sheets in an application must be the same size. One of the shorter sides of the sheet is regarded as its top. The size of the sheets on which drawings are made must be:

(1) 21.0 cm. by 29.7 cm. (DIN size A4), or

(2) 21.6 cm. by 27.9 cm. (8 1/2 by 11 inches).

(g) Margins. The sheets must not contain frames around the sight (i.e., the usable surface), but should have scan target points (i.e., cross hairs) printed on two cater-corner margin corners. Each sheet must include a top margin of at least 2.5 cm. (1 inch), a left side margin of at least 2.5 cm. (1 inch), a right side margin of at least 1.5 cm. (5/8 inch), and a bottom margin of at least 1.0 cm. (3/8 inch), thereby leaving a sight no greater than 17.0 cm. by 26.2 cm. on 21.0 cm. by 29.7 cm. (DIN size A4) drawing sheets, and a sight no greater than 17.6 cm. by 24.4 cm. (6 15/16 by 9 5/8 inches) on 21.6 cm. by 27.9 cm. (8 1/2 by 11 inch) drawing sheets.

(h) Views. The drawing must contain as many views as necessary to show the invention. The views may be plan, elevation, section, or perspective views. Detail views of portions of elements, on a larger scale if necessary, may also be used. All views of the drawing must be grouped together and arranged on the sheet(s) without wasting space, preferably in an upright position, clearly separated from one another, and must not be included in the sheets containing the specifications, claims, or abstract. Views must not be connected by projection lines and must not contain centerlines. Waveforms of electrical signals may be connected by dashed lines to show the relative timing of the waveforms.

(1) Exploded views. Exploded views, with the separated parts embraced by a bracket, to show the relationship or order of assembly of various parts are permissible. When an exploded view is shown in a figure, which is on the same sheet as another figure, the exploded view should be placed in brackets.

(2) Partial views. When necessary, a view of a large machine or device in its entirety may be broken into partial views on a single sheet, or extended over several sheets if there is no loss in facility of understanding the view. Partial views drawn on separate sheets must always be capable of being linked edge to edge so that no partial view contains parts of another partial view. A smaller scale view should be included showing the whole formed by the partial views and indicating the positions of the parts shown. When a portion of a view is enlarged for magnification purposes, the view and the enlarged view must each be labeled as separate views.

(i) Where views on two or more sheets form, in effect, a single complete view, the views on the several sheets must be so arranged that the complete figure can be assembled without concealing any part of any of the views appearing on the various sheets.

(ii) A very long view may be divided into several parts placed one above the other on a single sheet. However, the relationship between the different parts must be clear and unambiguous.

(3) Sectional views. The plane upon which a sectional view is taken should be indicated on the view from which the section is cut by a broken line. The ends of the broken line should be designated by Arabic or Roman numerals corresponding to the view number of the sectional view, and should have arrows to indicate the direction of sight. Hatching must be used to indicate section portions of an object, and must be made by regularly spaced oblique parallel lines spaced sufficiently apart to enable the lines to be distinguished without difficulty. Hatching should not impede the clear reading of the reference characters and lead lines. If it is not possible to place reference characters outside the hatched area, the hatching may be broken off wherever reference characters are inserted. Hatching must be at a substantial angle to the surrounding axes or principal lines, preferably 45°. A cross section must be set out and drawn to show all of the materials as they are shown in the view from which the cross section was taken. The parts in cross section must show proper material(s) by hatching with regularly spaced parallel oblique strokes, the space between strokes being chosen on the basis of the total area to be hatched. The various parts of a cross section of the same item should be hatched in the same manner and should accurately and graphically indicate the nature of the material(s) that is illustrated in cross section. The hatching of juxtaposed different elements must be angled in a different way. In the case of large areas, hatching may be confined to an edging drawn around the entire inside of the outline of the area to be hatched. Different types of hatching should have different conventional meanings as regards the nature of a material seen in cross section.

(4) Alternate position. A moved position may be shown by a broken line superimposed upon a suitable view if this can be done without crowding; otherwise, a separate view must be used for this purpose.

(5) Modified forms. Modified forms of construction must be shown in separate views.

(i) Arrangement of views. One view must not be placed upon another or within the outline of another. All views on the same sheet should stand in the same direction and, if possible, stand so that they can be read with the sheet held in an upright position. If views wider than the width of the sheet are necessary for the clearest illustration of the invention, the sheet may be turned on its side so that the top of the sheet, with the appropriate top margin to be used as the heading space, is on the right-hand side. Words must appear in a horizontal, left-to-right fashion when the page is either upright or turned so that the top becomes the right side, except for graphs utilizing standard scientific convention to denote the axis of abscissas (of X) and the axis of ordinates (of Y).

(j) Front page view. The drawing must contain as many views as necessary to show the invention. One of the views should be suitable for inclusion on the front page of the patent application publication and patent as the illustration of the invention. Views must not be connected by projection lines and must not contain centerlines. Applicant may suggest a single view (by figure number) for inclusion on the front page of the patent application publication and patent.

(k) Scale. The scale to which a drawing is made must be large enough to show the mechanism without crowding when the drawing is reduced in size to two-thirds in reproduction. Indications such as "actual size" or "scale 1/2" on the drawings are not permitted since these lose their meaning with reproduction in a different format.

(l) Character of lines, numbers, and letters. All drawings must be made by a process, which will give them satisfactory reproduction characteristics. Every line, number, and letter must be durable, clean, black (except for color drawings), sufficiently dense and dark, and uniformly thick and well defined. The weight of all lines and letters must be heavy enough to permit adequate reproduction. This requirement applies to all lines however fine, to shading, and to lines representing cut surfaces in sectional views. Lines and strokes of different thickness may be used in the same drawing where different thicknesses have a different meaning.

(m) Shading. The use of shading in views is encouraged if it aids in understanding the invention and if it does not reduce legibility. Shading is used to indicate the surface or shape of spherical, cylindrical, and conical elements of an object. Flat parts may also be lightly shaded. Such shading is preferred in the case of parts shown in perspective, but not for cross sections. See paragraph (h)(3) of this section. Spaced lines for shading are preferred. These lines must be thin, as few in number as practicable, and they must contrast with the rest of the drawings. As a substitute for shading, heavy lines on the shade side of objects can be used except where they superimpose on each other or obscure reference characters. Light should come from the upper left corner at an angle of 45°??Surface delineations should preferably be shown by proper shading. Solid black shading areas are not permitted, except when used to represent bar graphs or color.

(n) Symbols. Graphical drawing symbols may be used for conventional elements when appropriate. The elements for which such symbols and labeled representations are used must be adequately identified in the specification. Known devices should be illustrated by symbols, which have a universally recognized conventional meaning and are generally accepted in the art. Other symbols, which are not universally recognized, may be used, subject to approval by the Office, if they are not likely to be confused with existing conventional symbols, and if they are readily identifiable.

(o) Legends. Suitable descriptive legends may be used subject to approval by the Office, or may be required by the examiner where necessary for understanding of the drawing. They should contain as few words as possible.

(p) Numbers, letters, and reference characters.

(1) Reference characters (numerals are preferred), sheet numbers, and view numbers must be plain and legible, and must not be used in association with brackets or inverted commas, or enclosed within outlines, e.g., encircled. They must be oriented in the same direction as the view so as to avoid having to rotate the sheet. Reference characters should be arranged to follow the profile of the object depicted.

(2) The English alphabet must be used for letters, except where another alphabet is customarily used, such as the Greek alphabet to indicate angles, wavelengths, and mathematical formulas.

(3) Numbers, letters, and reference characters must measure at least .32 cm. (1/8 inch) in height. They should not be placed in the drawing so as to interfere with its comprehension. Therefore, they should not cross or mingle with the lines. They should not be placed upon hatched or shaded surfaces. When necessary, such as indicating a surface or cross section, a reference character may be underlined and a blank space may be left in the hatching or shading where the character occurs so that it appears distinct.

(4) The same part of an invention appearing in more than one view of the drawing must always be designated by the same reference character, and the same reference character must never be used to designate different parts.

(5) Reference characters not mentioned in the description shall not appear in the drawings. Reference characters mentioned in the description must appear in the drawings.

(q) Lead lines. Lead lines are those lines between the reference characters and the details referred to. Such lines may be straight or curved and should be as short as possible. They must originate in the immediate proximity of the reference character and extend to the feature indicated. Lead lines must not cross each other. Lead lines are required for each reference character except for those, which indicate the surface or cross section on which they are placed. Such a reference character must be underlined to make it clear that a lead line has not been left out by mistake. Lead lines must be executed in the same way as lines in the drawing. See paragraph (l) of this section.

(r) Arrows. Arrows may be used at the ends of lines, provided that their meaning is clear, as follows:

(1) On a lead line, a freestanding arrow to indicate the entire section towards which it points;

(2) On a lead line, an arrow touching a line to indicate the surface shown by the line looking along the direction of the arrow;

(3) To show the direction of movement.

(s) Copyright or Mask Work Notice. A copyright or mask work notice may appear in the drawing, but must be placed within the sight of the drawing immediately below the figure representing the copyright or mask work material and be limited to letters having a print size of .32 cm. to .64 cm. (1/8 to 1/4 inches) high. The content of the notice must be limited to only those elements provided for by law. For example, "©1983 John Doe" (17 U.S.C. 401) and "*M* John Doe" (17 U.S.C. 909) would be properly limited and, under current statutes, legally sufficient notices of copyright and mask work, respectively. Inclusion of a copyright or mask work notice will be permitted only if the authorization language set forth in § 1.71(e) is included at the beginning (preferably as the first paragraph) of the specification.

(t) Numbering of sheets of drawings. The sheets of drawings should be numbered in consecutive Arabic numerals, starting with 1, within the sight as defined in paragraph (g) of this section. These numbers, if present, must be placed in the middle of the top of the sheet, but not in the margin. The numbers can be placed on the right-hand side if the drawing extends too close to the middle of the top edge of the usable surface. The drawing sheet numbering must be clear and larger than the numbers used as reference characters to avoid confusion. The number of each sheet should be shown by two Arabic numerals placed on either side of an oblique line, with the first being the sheet number and the second being the total number of sheets of drawings, with no other marking.

(u) Numbering of views.

(1) The different views must be numbered in consecutive Arabic numerals, starting with 1, independent of the numbering of the sheets and, if possible, in the order in which they appear on the drawing sheet(s). Partial views intended to form one complete view, on one or several sheets, must be identified by the same number followed by a capital letter. View numbers must be preceded by the abbreviation "FIG." Where only a single view is used in an application to illustrate the claimed invention, it must not be numbered and the abbreviation "FIG." must not appear.

(2) Numbers and letters identifying the views must be simple and clear and must not be used in association with brackets, circles, or inverted commas. The view numbers must be larger than the numbers used for reference characters.

(v) Security markings. Authorized security markings may be placed on the drawings provided they are outside the sight, preferably centered in the top margin.

(w) Corrections. Any corrections on drawings submitted to the Office must be durable and permanent.

(x) Holes. No holes should be made by applicant in the drawing sheets.

(y) Types of drawings. See § 1.152 for design drawings, § 1.165 for plant drawings, and § 1.174 for reissue drawings.

37 CFR 1.121 Manner of making amendments in application.

(a) Amendments in applications, other than reissue applications. Amendments in applications, other than reissue applications, are made by filing a paper, in compliance with § 1.52, directing that specified amendments be made.

(b) Specification. Amendments to the specification, other than the claims, computer listings (§ 1.96) and sequence listings (§ 1.825), must be made by adding, deleting or replacing a paragraph, by replacing a section, or by a substitute specification, in the manner specified in this section.

(1) Amendment to delete, replace, or add a paragraph. Amendments to the specification, including amendment to a section heading or the title of the invention which are considered for amendment purposes to be an amendment of a paragraph, must be made by submitting:

(i) An instruction, which unambiguously identifies the location, to delete one or more paragraphs of the specification, replace a paragraph with one or more replacement paragraphs, or add one or more paragraphs;

(ii) The full text of any replacement paragraph with markings to show all the changes relative to the previous version of the paragraph. The text of any added subject matter must be shown by underlining the added text. The text of any deleted matter must be shown by strike-through except that double brackets placed before and after the deleted characters may be used to show deletion of five or fewer consecutive characters. The text of any deleted subject matter must be shown by being placed within double brackets if strikethrough cannot be easily perceived;

(iii) The full text of any added paragraphs without any underlining; and

(iv) The text of a paragraph to be deleted must not be presented with strike-through or placed within double brackets. The instruction to delete may identify a paragraph by its paragraph number or include a few words from the beginning, and end, of the paragraph, if needed for paragraph identification purposes.

(2) Amendment by replacement section. If the sections of the specification contain section headings as provided in § 1.77(b), § 1.154(b), or § 1.163(c), amendments to the specification, other than the claims, may be made by submitting:

(i) A reference to the section heading along with an instruction, which unambiguously identifies the location, to delete that section of the specification and to replace such deleted section with a replacement section; and;

(ii) A replacement section with markings to show all changes relative to the previous version of the section. The text of any added subject matter must be shown by underlining the added text. The text of any deleted matter must be shown by strike-through except that double brackets placed before and after the deleted characters may be used to show deletion of five or fewer consecutive characters. The text of any deleted subject matter must be shown by being placed within double brackets if strike-through cannot be easily perceived.

(3) Amendment by substitute specification. The specification, other than the claims, may also be amended by submitting:

(i) An instruction to replace the specification; and

(ii) A substitute specification in compliance with §§ 1.125(b) and (c).

(4) Reinstatement of previously deleted paragraph or section. A previously deleted paragraph or section may be reinstated only by a subsequent amendment adding the previously deleted paragraph or section.

(5) Presentation in subsequent amendment document. Once a paragraph or section is amended in a first amendment document, the paragraph or section shall not be represented in a subsequent amendment document unless it is amended again or a substitute specification is provided.

(c) Claims. Amendments to a claim must be made by rewriting the entire claim with all changes (e.g., additions and deletions) as indicated in this subsection, except when the claim is being canceled. Each amendment document that includes a change to an existing claim, cancellation of an existing claim or addition of a new claim, must include a complete listing of all claims ever presented, including the text of all pending and withdrawn claims, in the application. The claim listing, including the text of the claims, in the amendment document will serve to replace all prior versions of the claims, in the application. In the claim listing, the status of every claim must be indicated after its claim number by using one of the following identifiers in a parenthetical expression: (Original), (Currently amended), (Canceled), (Withdrawn), (Previously presented), (New), and (Not entered).

(1) Claim listing. All of the claims presented in a claim listing shall be presented in ascending numerical order. Consecutive claims having the same status of "canceled" or "not entered" may be aggregated into one statement (e.g., Claims 1-5 (canceled)). The claim listing shall commence on a separate sheet of the amendment document and the sheet(s) that contain the text of any part of the claims shall not contain any other part of the amendment.

(2) When claim text with markings is required. All claims being currently amended in an amendment paper shall be presented in the claim listing, indicate a status of "currently amended," and be submitted with markings to indicate the changes that have been made relative to the immediate prior version of the claims. The text of any added subject matter must be shown by underlining the added text. The text of any deleted matter must be shown by strike-through except that double brackets placed before and after the deleted characters may be used to show deletion of five or fewer consecutive characters. The text of any deleted subject matter must be shown by being placed within double brackets if strike-through cannot be easily perceived. Only claims having the status of "currently amended," or "withdrawn" if also being amended, shall include markings. If a withdrawn claim is currently amended, its status in the claim listing may be identified as "withdrawn- currently amended."

(3) When claim text in clean version is required. The text of all pending claims not being currently amended shall be presented in the claim listing in clean version, i.e., without any markings in the presentation of text. The presentation of a clean version of any claim having the status of "original," "withdrawn" or "previously presented" will constitute an assertion that it has not been changed relative to the immediate prior version, except to omit markings that may have been present in the immediate prior version of the claims of the status of "withdrawn" or "previously presented." Any claim added by amendment must be indicated with the status of "new" and presented in clean version, i.e., without any underlining.

(4) When claim text shall not be presented; canceling a claim.

(i) No claim text shall be presented for any claim in the claim listing with the status of "canceled" or "not entered."

(ii) Cancellation of a claim shall be effected by an instruction to cancel a particular claim number. Identifying the status of a claim in the claim listing as "canceled" will constitute an instruction to cancel the claim.

(5) Reinstatement of previously canceled claim. A claim which was previously canceled may be reinstated only by adding the claim as a "new" claim with a new claim number.

(d) Drawings: One or more application drawings shall be amended in the following manner: Any changes to an application drawing must be in compliance with § 1.84 and must be submitted on a replacement sheet of drawings which shall be an attachment to the amendment document and, in the top margin, labeled "Replacement Sheet". Any replacement sheet of drawings shall include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is amended. Any new sheet of drawings containing an additional figure must be labeled in the top margin as "New Sheet". All changes to the drawings shall be explained, in detail, in either the drawing amendment or remarks section of the amendment paper.

(1) A marked-up copy of any amended drawing figure, including annotations indicating the changes made, may be included. The marked-up copy must be clearly labeled as "Annotated Sheet" and must be presented in the amendment or remarks section that explains the change to the drawings.

(2) A marked-up copy of any amended drawing figure, including annotations indicating the changes made, must be provided when required by the examiner.

(e) Disclosure consistency. The disclosure must be amended, when required by the Office, to correct inaccuracies of description and definition, and to secure substantial correspondence between the claims, the remainder of the specification, and the drawings.

(f) No new matter. No amendment may introduce new matter into the disclosure of an application.

(g) Exception for examiner's amendments. Changes to the specification, including the claims, of an application made by the Office in an examiner's amendment may be made by specific instructions to insert or delete subject matter set forth in the examiner's amendment by identifying the precise point in the specification or the claim(s) where the insertion or deletion is to be made. Compliance with paragraphs (b)(1), (b)(2), or (c) of this section is not required.

(h) Amendment sections. Each section of an amendment document (e.g., amendment to the claims, amendme nt to the specification, replacement drawings, and remarks) must begin on a separate sheet.

(i) Amendments in reissue applications. Any amendment to the description and claims in reissue applications must be made in accordance with § 1.173.

(j) Amendments in reexamination proceedings. Any proposed amendment to the description and claims in patents involved in reexamination proceedings must be made in accordance with § 1.530.

(k) Amendments in provisional applications. Amendments in provisional applications are not usually made. If an amendment is made to a provisional application, however, it must comply with the provisions of this section. Any amendments to a provisional application shall be placed in the provisional application file but may not be entered.

37 CFR 1.152 Design drawings

The design must be represented by a drawing that complies with the requirements of § 1.84 and must contain a sufficient number of views to constitute a complete disclosure of the appearance of the design. Appropriate and adequate surface shading should be used to show the character or contour of the surfaces represented. Solid black surface shading is not permitted except when used to represent the color black as well as color contrast. Broken lines may be used to show visible environmental structure, but may not be used to show hidden planes and surfaces that cannot be seen through opaque materials. Alternate positions of a design component, illustrated by full and broken lines in the same view are not permitted in a design drawing. Photographs and ink drawings are not permitted to be combined as formal drawings in one application. Photographs submitted in lieu of ink drawings in design patent applications must not disclose environmental structure but must be limited to the design claimed for the article.

37 CFR 1.153 Title, description and claim, oath or declaration

(a) The title of the design must designate the particular article. No description, other than a reference to the drawing, is ordinarily required. The claim shall be in formal terms to the ornamental design for the article (specifying name) as shown, or as shown and described. More than one claim is neither required nor permitted.

(b) The oath or declaration required of the applicant must comply with § 1.63.

37 CFR 1.154 Arrangement of application elements in a design application

(a) The elements of the design application, if applicable, should appear in the following order:

(1) Design application transmittal form.

(2) Fee transmittal form.

(3) Application data sheet (see § 1.76).

(4) Specification.

(5) Drawings or photographs.

(6) Executed oath or declaration (see § 1.153(b)).

(b) The specification should include the following sections in order:

(1) Preamble, stating the name of the applicant, title of the design, and a brief description of the nature and intended use of the article in which the design is embodied.

(2) Cross-reference to related applications (unless included in the application data sheet).

(3) Statement regarding federally sponsored research or development.

(4) Description of the figure or figures of the drawing.

(5) Feature description.

(6) A single claim.

(c) The text of the specification sections defined in paragraph (b) of this section, if applicable, should be preceded by a section heading in uppercase letters without underlining or bold type.

37 CFR 1.155 Expedited examination of design applications

(a) The applicant may request that the Office expedite the examination of a design application. To qualify for expedited examination:

(1) The application must include drawings in compliance with § 1.84;

(2) The applicant must have conducted a pre-examination search; and

(3) The applicant must file a request for expedited examination including:

(i) The fee set forth in § 1.17(k);

(ii) A statement that a pre-examination search was conducted. The statement must also indicate the field of search and include an information disclosure statement in compliance with § 1.98.

(b) The Office will not examine an application that is not in condition for examination (e.g., missing basic filing fee) even if the applicant files a request for expedited examination under this section.

I, (Name)________________________________________________ have invented a new design for a (Title)_________________________________________________ as set forth in the following specification:

FIG. 1 is a _______________________ view of a __________________________ showing my new design;

FIG. 2 is a _______________________ view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a _______________________ view thereof;

FIG. 4 is a _______________________ view thereof;

FIG. 5 is a _______________________ view thereof; and

FIG. 6 is a _______________________ view thereof.

I claim: The ornamental design for a _________________________________________________ as shown.

*Applicants are referred to the Disclosure Examples on Pages 9-13, to determine the proper wording and number of Figure Descriptions appropriate to their disclosure. Questions regarding a design patent application and its forms may be directed to the Design Patent Practice Specialist of Technology Center 2900 at (571) 272-2900.

United States Patent and Trademark Office Commissioner for Patents P.O. Box 1450 Alexandria, VA 22313-1450

An Agency of the United States Department of Commerce

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Artjournalist

365 Drawing Ideas for Your Sketchbook

Need some ideas for what to draw in your sketchbook? This list of 365 drawing ideas is sure to inspire you to doodle, draw, or sketch something every single day of the year!

This list of 365 drawing ideas is sure to inspire you to doodle, draw, or sketch something every single day of the year! You can choose whether to draw one drawing a day, go in the list in order, or simply skip around and choose the ones you like best!

Here are 365 Drawing Ideas to Inspire:

1. view from the park.

Parks are great sources of inspiration for drawing. Snap a few of your own reference photos of monuments, benches, and scenes that capture your eye or spend some time in the park with your sketchbook drawing the different scenes you notice.

2. Hot Air Balloon

Hot air balloons are mesmerizing to watch in the sky and can be a beautiful and whimsical thing to learn how to draw. While it’s not too common anymore to see one floating past you in real-life, there are MANY photos out there that you can use as a reference.

Snap a photo of yourself or try drawing yourself while you look in a mirror.

You might see leaves on the ground during autumn or notice them on trees in the spring and summer. Choose a few different leaf shapes to draw.

They say once you learn how to ride a bike you never forget – so why not try the same thing with learning to draw a bicycle? You can make it realistic or simply create a fun doodle.

6. Hedgehog

Hedgehogs are adorable spiny creatures most commonly found in Europe, Asia, and Africa, and in New Zealand. Draw one today!

7. Baseball and/or Baseball Glove

This was actually an assignment we had in high school to practice realistic sketching and shading using nothing more than a #2 pencil!

8. Fruit Bowl

The classic fruit bowl still life might not sound like the most creative idea for drawing, but have you tried it? You might just be surprised. You could also draw a still life of bananas, oranges, apples, or grapes.

9. Tropical Fish

There are so many types of tropical fish to consider as an idea for things that are easy to draw – choose from an angel fish, a clown fish or even maybe a butterflyfish!

10. Skyscrapers

We see so many great examples of skyscraper architecture in our cities that there are endless sources of inspiration for types of skyscrapers you could draw. Take your sketchbook out locally to a city near you, or spend some time drawing iconic skyscrapers such as the Bank of China Tower, the Taipei 101, or the Chrysler Building.

Dragons are mythical creatures that have been a drawing subject since ancient times. Draw a dragon with a knight in shining armor, a Chinese dragon, or maybe even a friendly dragon that helps you roast marshmallows.

Unlock the power of your creativity by drawing some keys! You can choose to draw old fashioned skeleton keys or draw a sketch of the keys out of your purse or your house key.

13. Volcano

Have you ever seen a volcano in real life? Even if you’ve only seen one in movies or in photographs they can be fascinating subjects for art and sketching.

14. Sail Boat

Sailboats are often see on lakes and at marinas and can have all sorts of beautiful designs on the sails.

Draw a teddy bear, a brown bear or a grizzly bear – your choice!

Lay down on a blanket in your yard or at a park and spend some time cloud-gazing for inspiration on what to draw.

17. Family Member

You can have a family member pose while you create a portrait sketch of them, or draw a portrait based on a photo of someone you know.

What can I say about sharks? They have big teeth, they live in the ocean, and they can be very fun and popular to draw.

19. Feather

Birds of a feather…are a great thing to draw! You can make them icon style, or try to recreate a realistic feather on paper.

20. T-Shirt

Surely you have a t-shirt in your closet that would make for a great subject for drawing.

21. The Kitchen

Kitchens are where food is made and are often overlooked as the perfect place to sketch to get a glimpse into your everyday life.

22. Satellite:

Satellites are constantly in orbit around our earth, and they are very interesting looking items with many different geometric lines to use to build your drawing skills.

23. Penguin

Penguins are seabirds that live in mostly cold climates. They don’t fly but they sure do love to swim!

24. Fashion Sketch

What’s trending in the fashion world? Come up with your own fashion designs or take inspiration from some of the leading fashion designers to create your own fashion sketches.

The best part about aliens as a drawing idea? You can make them look like almost anything your imagination can think of, since it is very rare to actually see them in real-life.

26. Pirate Ship

Ahoy Matey! Pirate ships are a great thing to draw in your sketchbook and can be realistic or make your own cartoon.

27. Skateboard

The nice thing about drawing a skateboard is its not nearly as intimidating as trying to actually ride a skateboard.

Celebrate today by drawing a beautiful cake! You can choose how many layers, what kind of icing, and what type of topper fits the occasion. There are so many ideas to draw for what kind of cake you make!

29. Butterfly

There are so many different kinds of beautiful butterflies you could draw, such as monarchs or swallowtail butterflies.

30. Race Car

Vroom vroom, race cars are designed for speed. Draw your favorite kind of race car, whether it’s an old fashioned derby style car or a racecar fit for Nascar tournament.

If you have a cat you can draw a portrait of your own pet or of course you could make a cartoon cat – we all know and love Garfield the Cat and his affinity for lasagna.

With over 190 registered dog breeds by the American Kennel Club you could almost make it a daily challenge just to draw a different type of dog.

33. Super Hero

It’s a bird, it’s a plane…it’s super man! Draw one of your favorite super heroes or create your own!

34. Cup of Coffee or Tea

If you’re going to drink coffee or tea every day, you might as well sketch it, right? Not a coffee or tea drinker? You can always sketch a glass of water.

35. Dinosaur

Dinosaur…roar! Draw a T-rex, a brontosaurus, a triceratops, pterodactyl or a velociraptor if you wish – there are so many great dinosaurs to choose from as sketchbook inspiration!

36. Web Icons

Web icons have become so common place we see them everywhere online. Sketch some icons for your favorite social media channels or visit a site like flaticon.com  for inspiration!

Pizza can be a lot of fun to draw, especially because you get to choose the toppings! Will you make it a veggie pizza, pepperoni pizza or maybe a Hawaiian pizza with pineapple and ham?

38. Dandelions

Every kid knows if you blow on a dandelion and make a wish your wish will come true, much to the dismay of gardeners everywhere who view them as weeds. These edible flowers make for a great easy drawing idea.

39. Hair Styles

Draw a braid, an up-do, or even crazy Medusa inspired snake hair if you wish.

40. Necklace, Bracelet or Rings

Jewelry can be a very interesting thing to sketch or draw, especially if the jewelry has special meaning to you, such as a necklace or ring passed on through your family or given to you by someone special.

41. Ice Cream Cone

Ice cream comes in all sorts of different flavors, and of course there are many different shapes and sizes of cones to choose from, whether its a cake cone, a sugar cone or a waffle cone!

42. Aquarium

Aquariums are beautiful habitats for all sorts of fish and can include plants or even decorative items.

43. Haunted House

It doesn’t have to be Halloween to enjoy drawing a spooky and haunted house. Don’t forget details like cracked windows and bent railings – and maybe even a few spirits peeking through.

Whether you draw a beautiful covered bridge scene or a bridge that goes over a river or harbor through the city, bridges give you plenty of architectural inspiration to use as drawing ideas!

45. Crazy Hats

Go ahead, give yourself permission to be a mad hatter and design as many crazy hats as you can think of!

46. Chevron Patterns

Chevrons are fun to draw and there are so many different pattern variations you can try!

You could draw a chandelier, a bedside table lamp, or maybe even a lava lamp!

48. Cruise Ship

Cruise ships are designed to take tourists to view the sights and scenes along the ocean coast. Draw the view from the deck or draw the view from one you can see passing by on the coast.

49. Planets in Outer Space

Draw a single planet like Mars, Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Neptune or Jupiter – or draw the whole solar system!

They say eyes are the window of the soul, and it’s true you can learn a lot about a person’s feelings and thoughts based on how their eyes look. Draw your own eyes or draw the mesmerizing eyes of different animals.

51. Caricature

A caricature is a type of cartoon drawing where something about the subject is exaggerated to be funny. For example, if your friend loves to knit or crochet, you might exaggerate the ball of yarn in their hand. Use this drawing idea to make a funny sketch of your friends, family members or even a pet or celebrity.

Everybody needs shoes to walk around, so go ahead and grab the pair of shoes you wear everyday and sketch them!

53. Dream Catcher

Dream catchers are designed to catch bad dreams and keep nightmares away. They are a lot of fun to draw!

54. Rocket Ship

Fly to the moon or a distant galaxy far, far away in your very own rocket ship you can design with this simple idea for drawing.

55. House Plants

Whether it’s a succulent, an aloe vera plant, or a terrarium, if you have anything green growing in your house it can be an excellent source of inspiration for drawing ideas.

56. Inspiring Quote

Practice your hand-lettering by illustrating one of your favorite quotes, sayings, or verse from a poem.

Guitars are stringed instruments that can instantly make us tap our feet and sing along. You can choose to sketch an acoustic guitar or an electric guitar.

58. Deciduous Trees

Deciduous trees are the type of trees that lose their leaves in the winter. Examples include oak trees, maple trees, cherry trees, and ash trees. You can choose what season to show the tree – is it spring, winter, summer or autumn?

59. Circus Clown

Clowns can be funny, happy, sad…or even scary! You get to decide which you wish to draw with this drawing prompt.

60. Fairy Tale

Illustrate a scene from your favorite fairy tale. Some examples include Snow White and the 7 Dwarves, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, or Hansel and Gretel.

Bottles come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. You could draw a message in a bottle, soda bottles, apothecary bottles and more.

62. What You Last Ate:

What you last ate for breakfast, lunch or dinner is a simple and obvious drawing idea, but so few people think to actually do it and is a great idea for something to include in a sketchbook.

63. Parrot:

Parrots are colorful and tropical birds, so pull out the colored pencils or some inks to make this come alive in your journal.

What is your favorite book? You could choose to draw a stack of books or draw the cover of a recent book you’ve read and enjoyed. 

65. Elephants

They say an elephant never forgets, and if you draw one you will have a picture to remember an elephant by forever!

66. Camping Scene

Whether you want to draw a travel trailer or a tent, sketch a camping scene. Don’t forget the campfire and marshmallows!

Tigers are big cats with interesting black and orange striped patterns, making them the perfect subject for a page in your sketchbook.

Cartoon-like roses can be easy to draw – they are just a spiral and a circle. Or, challenge your skills to draw a life-like rose complete with petals and stem – just watch out for those thorns!

Zebras are native to Africa and are another interesting animal to draw that are best well known for their black and white stripes.

70. Monster

Could there be a monster hiding under your bed, or in your closet? Probably not, but you never know – which is why you should draw a bigger, more friendlier monster to protect you and scare away all other monsters.

You might remember globes from school and they make for fantastic drawing objects, especially if you are a travel or geography buff.

72. Staircase

We see steps everywhere in regular life, whether it’s in your house, in a park, or maybe even a spiraling staircase along a water tower like in the photo above I took at a nearby park by my house.

73. Peacock

My grandparents used to have peacocks when I was a kid, and they are absolutely beautiful and incredible birds with detailed feathers that are perfect for drawing!

74. The Ocean

You could create an under water scene complete with coral and sea creatures like whales, an octopus and more.

75. Crocodile or Alligator

Crocodiles have a longer, V-shaped snout, while alligators have broad U shaped snouts. Either way, you could draw a snapping good crocodile or alligator in your journal – maybe even both!

76. A Clock

What’s the time? There’s always time to draw something daily! Draw a clock tower, a grandfather’s clock, or an alarm clock.

77. Gumball Machine

A gumball machine can be a lot of fun to draw, and of course there is no rule you have to fill it with gumballs – you can always choose to fill it with a different type of candy, it is your drawing afterall!

78. Giraffes

Known for their long necks, make sure you don’t forget their third horn at the top of their heads. We love visiting the giraffes named Louis and Socks at the local zoo where we live.

79. Bubbles

Bubbles make for a great ideas for what to draw, especially because they are relatively easy for beginners and you could fill a whole page with bubbles in no time!

80. Sports Player

Do you have a favorite sport? Sketch a player in action whether its soccer, baseball, football, hockey or badminton.

81. Airplane

There are so many options for what you could draw with an airplane, whether its the plane’s exterior, the interior, the view from the window, or even possibly the pilot’s cockpit.

82. Sunflowers

Sunflowers are bright, cheerful, and one of my favorite flowers to see standing tall in the summer sun.

83. Mountains

Try your hand at this idea for drawing mountains by sketching a Rocky Mountain or Appalachian mountain landscape.

84. Bath Tub

Rub-a-dub Dub, draw a bathtub! Don’t forget your rubber duckie!

There are so many great herbs that you can use for drawing. If you grow your own fresh herbs, set them up in a way you can sketch them as a real subject or use reference photos for herbs like basil, rosemary, and thyme.

86. Family heirlooms

Family heirlooms are always special, and what better way to preserve them than to sketch them in your art journal?

If you’re a lucky duck, you might even be able to see these water birds at a nearby park or lake by you, but plenty of reference photos abound – you can even use the photo I took of a duck here if you’d like as inspiration!

88. Wildflowers

Draw a beautiful landscape meadow of wildflowers, or take inspiration from botanists through history who meticulously sketched and documented wildflowers in the field.

Someone once told me I didn’t draw a very serious spider, so I gave this spider a briefcase, neck tie and his own private office with a certificate just to prove how serious he was.

90. Drawing Supplies

You already have the perfect subject for drawing in your hand – a pen, pencil, bottle of ink or charcoal set all make for great things to draw.

Fairies are enchanting, tiny human-like creatures that have wings and can fly.

92. Woodland Animals

Draw a deer, a raccoon, a fox, a squirrel, or other woodland animals with this drawing idea.

93. Hippie Van

While you may not be able to actually own and live in a hippie van, you can draw one and that’s the next best thing.

94. Ostrich

Ostriches are fun to draw – and you can decide whether or not it sticks its head in the sand! {Of course, they don’t *actually do this* but that’s the nice thing about drawing, you can use your imagination!}

Whether it is just a slice of your favorite kind of pie or the whole thing, your mouth will be watering by the time you are done drawing this one!

Eggs are a great way to practice your shadowing and depth in drawing. And don’t think you’re limited to just plain white eggs like you get at the grocery store – you can always make them different hues and sizes or decorate with patterns and shapes!

Grab a dollar bill or some loose change and try drawing it. This is a great way to practice shading, depth and more if you want to create realistic drawings.

98. Cooking Utensils & Kitchen Gadgets

Don’t use your blender that often? It’s the perfect opportunity to finally put it to use as a drawing subject! You could also sketch your pots and pans, eating utensils, or other kitchen gadgets you have around the house.

99. Your House

Where we live makes for an excellent idea of what to draw, and you can choose whether to draw the interior or the exterior.

Old fashioned radios are fascinating objects, and many times they still work even in today’s world of digital media. Go for a classic vintage radio, or maybe even draw a 90’s style boombox.

101. Fast Food

You know the drill: soda, burger and fries.

We have smart phones with us almost every day – why not draw it in your sketchbook and document that? Or, draw an old rotary phone for a throwback to the days before cell phones existed.

You could draw a hammer, screw driver, drill, saw, wrench or draw the whole toolbox.

104. Arrows

There are so many different styles of arrows you could try drawing, whether you make arrow doodles or draw a realistic bow and arrow set.

105. Jelly Beans

Known for their unique shape, multiple colors and best found in Easter baskets, jelly beans are a great idea for something to draw!

106. Game Controller

Are you a gamer? Whether it’s Play Station, X-Box, a Gaming Keyboard, or an old school Atari controller, draw a game controller that reminds you of your favorite video games.

107. Soup Can

Take inspiration from Andy Warhol and try your hand at drawing a soup can.

108. Fireworks

Let your paper be the sky for a colorful display of patterns of light.

109. Forest Scene

Think trees, moss covered rocks and maybe even a stream winding through a forest scene perfect for a landscape sketch.

110. Astrological Signs & Symbols

What’s your sign? You could draw a Pisces fish, the Scales of Libra, the Scorpion of Scorpio or the Archer of Sagittarius for example.

111. Banners

Banners are a lot of fun to draw and you can make them as whimsical as you wish. I love drawing banners in my art journals!

112. Wristwatch

Do you wear a watch? Whether its a smartwatch or a classic watch you wind up, draw a wristwatch in your sketchbook.

113. Nuts, Bolts & Other Hardware

Take a walk down a hardware aisle or go through your garage to find nuts, bolts, and other miscellaneous hardware to sketch and draw.

114. Typewriter

There is something cool about a typewriter, even if they don’t make much sense in today’s digital age…they are definitely fun to draw!

115. Bunnies or Rabbits

Bunnies and rabbits are cute, soft and fluffy. I used to have one as a kid!

Ivy is a plant that spreads, often times along a wall, window or trellis and is best known for beautiful leaf shapes – perfect for drawing in your sketchbook!

117. Machines

We see all kinds of machines in our daily lives – from the washing machine, to the dishwasher to the furnace that keeps our homes warm. You could also invent your own machine!

118. Garden Tools

A garden shovel, gloves, trowel etc are all examples of common garden tools that make the perfect subject for still life drawing ideas.

119. City Skylines

Draw a silhouette of a city skyline, whether it is a local city where you live or one you want to visit someday.

120. What’s on your desk?

Take a look at what is on your desk today and sketch it – no matter how messy your desk may be!

121. Pineapple

Pineapples were named pine apples because of their exterior resembles a pine cone. Often viewed as a symbol of friendship, these tropical fruits are the perfect thing to try drawing!

122. Hearts

You can choose to draw doodle hearts, or draw an anatomically correct depiction of a human heart.

The first steam train was invented in 1804 and many people were afraid to ride them. Today, trains are still used for transportation and shipping. You can make a passenger train or a cargo train. Draw a single box car, the engine, or the caboose!

124. Lawnmower

My husband is always talking about fixing his broken lawnmower, so I had to include it on this list. You can draw a riding mower or a push mower or even a commercial lawnmower.

125. Hourglass

An hourglass is a type of sand filled timer which you’ve probably seen more often in board games.

126. Scissors

A basic and important office supply, drawing realistic scissors can be more challenging than you might think!

127. Mailbox

Everybody gets mail, so why not sketch your mailbox?

128. Ticket

Have you recently gone to an event where you needed a ticket? Draw or sketch that ticket in your sketchbook.

129. Circles

Circles might seem like a mundane drawing idea, but there are so many great ideas for drawing circular patterns and different circle sizes!

If you are lucky enough to have a grape vineyard nearby, you can find a LOT of inspiration to sketch and draw vines! Many different types of vines also grow on trees.

X-rays allow us to see inside someone or something. You can draw an X-ray view of a person or an object.

132. Tunnels

Tunnels are a great way to practice drawing perspective, especially if you are drawing the view from the beginning to the end of a tunnel.

133. People at Work

Millions of people go t work every single day. This could be construction workers, people in your office, or even the cashiers at the store.

134. Ladders

Ladders are another great exercise for drawing perspective. There are also many different kinds of ladders – from step ladders to paint ladders to imaginary ladders that climb all the way to the clouds.

135. Playground

Draw a swingset, sliding board, the view in the sandbox at a nearby park or playground where you live.

136. Swirls

Swirls are fun to draw and can be highly meditative and addictive! Fill a page with swirls or practice drawing some swirly flourishes.

137. Dancing

Draw people who are dancing, and be sure their clothes and dance moves reflect the type of music they are dancing to!

138. Sunglasses or Eyeglasses

Set up a pair of your sunglasses or eyeglasses on a table and start sketching them.

139. Hills & Valleys

Rolling hills and valleys can give a typical landscape sketch a lot of visual interest.

140. Rocks & Stones

Are you a rock collector? Have you ever been to a rocky beach or noticed rocks along the shore of a river? Take some time to draw the details of rocks or stones.

Good fences make good neighbors, according to poet Robert Frost. They also make for great drawing subjects, whether it’s a white picket fence, a split rail fence or a wrought-iron fence.

142. Triangles

There are so many different kinds of patterns you can create just with a simple triangle!

Moo! Cows can be found on farms around the world and are a great animal to try drawing – this sketch of a baby calf is so cute!

There are over 6,300 known species of frogs in the world, which means you have a lot of choices on what kind of frog to draw! Draw a tree frog, a bullfrog, an African claw frog, or other frog of your choosing.

145. Spool of Thread & Other Sewing Notions

Do you have a sewing box? A simple spool of thread and other sewing notions can make for a great still life.

146. Tomato

Some people love tomatoes, others could leave them. Either way, they make for a n excellent drawing subject.

147. Squares and Rectangles

Drawing squares and rectangles gives you plenty of opportunities to discover new patterns in your doodles. Tip: For straight lines, use a ruler!

148. Tea kettle

How about a nice relaxing cup of tea? Sketch a tea kettle in your journal.

149. Lightbulb

The symbol for creativity and ideas, light bulbs are an invention we still rely on heavily today. Try drawing something inside of a lightbulb for an illuminating challenge.

150. Party Supplies

What do you need to throw a party? You could draw party hats, noise makers, or keep it simple with just party foods.

151. Railroad tracks

Railroad tracks are very dangerous to be around, so I do not suggest trying to go near them for sketching, but there are many pictures you can use as reference and they are great practice for perspective.

Porches are welcoming gathering places for company and the perfect scene to sketch.

153. Rainbow

Rainbows are easy to draw and a great excuse to pull out the colored pencils. An easy way to remember the order of the colors is the acronym Roy G. Biv: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet.

154. Lemonade Stand

Every kid dreams of having a lemonade stand someday, and now is your chance to finally design the lemonade stand of your dreams.

Do you play piano? You can choose to draw a close-up of the keys, someone playing the piano, an upright piano, or a baby grand piano.

156. Hallways

Interior hallways can be a great way to practice drawing perspective, especially if the hallway has a lot of doors or wall decor.

157. Watch Gears

What’s inside a watch? Lots of little gear parts that make for fun and easy drawing ideas.

It doesn’t have to be taco tuesday to draw a taco. Fill up that shell with all your favorite ingredients and toppings!

159. Paint & Paint Brush

Pull out your paints and paint brushes to set up a still life scene of an artist at work.

160. Faces With Different Emotions

So often in portraits we see people happy – try drawing faces with different emotions such as angry, sad, frustrated, or calm.

161. Dishes

Dishes can have all sorts of different patterns and styles that can make for fantastic creative inspiration.

162. Fountain

Whether its an outdoor or indoor fountain, there are all sorts of interesting details to capture when drawing a fountain.

163. Puzzle Pieces

Puzzles are always entertaining. Grab a puzzle off your game shelf and scatter a few pieces around to sketch and draw.

164. Monkey

You probably can’t have a pet monkey like Curious George in real life, but you can always draw a character of your own.

165. Angels

Angels are majestic divine beings of light, and a fantastic source of inspiration for sketching and drawing.

One of the nice things about drawing hands is you always have a realistic model attached to you! Try different poses or holding different objects.

167. Pair of Socks

Do you have a pair of crazy socks? You can sketch a pair of socks you already own, or make your own crazy sock designs.

168. Bag or Purse

We use bags all the time in our everyday life, whether it’s a shopping bag or a purse where you keep your keys, wallet and more. Draw the bag itself or draw a fashion sketch of a person wearing a bag.

169. Umbrella

Rainy days are a lot more bearable when you have a good umbrella to keep you dry!

170. Beach Scene

The beach is a relaxing and serene place to sit with a sketchbook and sketch the sights.

171. Bowling Ball and Pins

Bowling can be a lot of fun, and drawing a bowling ball and pins makes for a good drawing exercise.

172. Roller Coaster

Do you have a favorite rollercoaster ride? You can draw a lifelike imitation of a rollercoaster you love, or design your own with plenty of ups, downs, twists and turns.

We often associate witches with mean and scary looking old ladies, but Glenda the Good witch from the Wizard of Oz reminds us that not all witches are bad.

174. Headphones

Love listening to music? Don’t forget to sketch your headphones.

Are ghosts real? What do they look like? Now is your chance to draw one!

176. Paper Clips

Pull out a handful of paper clips from your office desk and sketch them.

177. King or Queen

You can draw a king or queen from history, or even imagine yourself as king or queen for the day.

178. Graffiti

Graffiti is a unique form of art and perfectly legal when done on paper.

179. Ladybugs

Ladybugs are cute beneficial insects in any garden.

180. Abstract Line Art

Use this as a chance to draw stripes or have fun with experimenting with different line angles on paper.

181. Mermaid

Fictional characters that live under the sea, mermaids have captivated the imagination of sailors and storytellers for ages.

Do you have any toys from your childhood? Pull them out and sketch them.

183. Junk Drawer

Everybody has a junk drawer – that place where stuff just ends up somehow. Go through your junk drawer and pick a couple of random objects to draw.

184. Highway road

Have you been on a any recent road trips lately? Highway roads are always an interesting thing to draw.

185. Backpack

What’s in your backpack? Whether you’re a hiker or a student or carry your laptop in a backpack, there’s plenty of different styles and shapes to choose from to draw!

186. Mushrooms

Did you know there are over 10,000 different types of mushrooms? That gives you a LOT of options for what to draw, whether you draw realistic mushrooms or fantasy style mushrooms in an enchanted forest.

187. Cactus

Whether you have a cactus growing at home or want to take inspiration from a desert landscape, cacti make for excellent drawing subjects.

188. Turtle

Don’t be shy – draw a turtle! You can make it realistic, cartoonish, or somewhere in between.

189. Seashells

Seashells are abundant in the world and come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, giving you plenty of creative options to explore when it comes to drawing them.

190. Photo Frames

Every piece of art needs a good frame, and this is a great prompt to make doodle frames or draw ornate frames inspired from vintage and antique photograph displays.

Where does the gate lead? You can draw a garden gate, a gateway to a new portal or maybe a gate to a haunted and spooky hollow.

192. Vegetables

Don’t want to eat your vegetables? Draw them instead!

I am always fascinated by the details in patchwork quilts. You can try drawing different quilt block designs, or even take inspiration from a crazy quilt with elaborate stitching and embroidery embellishing each patch!

194. Sunrise/sunset

The sun rises and sets every single day and that itself is pretty amazing! What’s a drawing prompt list without a sunset or sunrise?

You can draw your state or country’s flag, or choose to draw different flags from around the world.

There are many different types of bells, from bell towers to school bells to jingle bells.

197. Potato Chips

Are you in need of a snack? Next time you reach for that bag of potato chips, sketch it!

198. Your Closet

Open up your closet doors and sketch a scene of your current wardrobe. Hopefully you won’t find too many skeletons in there!

199. Vintage Photographs

Old vintage photos make for great drawing reference photo idea, especially when they feature historical lifestyles.

Heat things up by drawing flames or fire. You can draw a campfire, a fire in a fireplace, or flames surrounding another object.

201. Raindrops

Raindrops are their very own shape, and there are so many different ways you could interpret this! You could make raindrop patterns, or try to realistically capture what raindrops may look like on a pane of glass or when they fall and hit the ground.

Your choice – make a map of where you live, somewhere you’ve visited, or maybe even a map of a completely fictional and imaginary fantasy world.

203. Optical illusions

Optical illusions play with lines, shadows, and depth to create images that aren’t always what they appear to be. Play around with different ideas until you get a drawing that makes you look twice.

204. Snowman

Do you want to draw a snowman? You can make your snowman as elaborate or as simple as you’d like!

205. Steampunk

Steampunk is a type of science fiction where everything is steam powered. Think gears, flying contraptions, and all sorts of odd inventions. Prefer figure drawing? You could also draw people in steampunk attire!

206. Seagulls

These birds may be noisy, squacky, and annoying to deal with at the beach, but they are still beautiful to look at and the perfect subject for drawing.

207. Computer

We spend enough time at the computer, so take a break from the digital world and get out that sketchpad!

208. Chickens

Chickens come in all sorts of varieties – the American Poultry Association recognizes over 50 different breeds of chickens. You can choose to make this as simple or as complex as you wish!

209. Historic Scene

Scenes from history are always fun to illustrate, especially if you choose to depict a time before cameras were invented, which was in 1816.

210. The library

Go visit your local library and bring your sketchbook! You can choose to sketch the outside of the building or sit at a table where you can get a good view of the rows and rows of books.

211. Your grocery store

Shopping for food is an everyday necessity, and chances are you’ve been to the grocery store at least once in the past year. Draw some of the aisles, a grocery display case, or draw the exterior of the building.

212. Jar of Something

Everything in mason jars is all the rage in decor, or maybe you’re like me and love a jar of bread and butter pickles or homemade jam.

213. Numbers

You don’t have to be a mathematician to appreciate there are so many different ways to draw numbers! Practice hand-lettering in different styles or use basic numbers as a base for more elaborate doodles.

214. Your Bed

Researchers estimate the average person spends about 26 years of our lives in bed…which is a LOT of time sleeping! Give your bed its proper tribute by illustrating it in your sketchbook.

215. Impossible World

Maybe there’s an imaginary world where fish fly in the sky, or the moon is underwater…invent an imaginary fantasy world and draw it!

216. Speech Bubbles

How do you convey spoken words in your drawings? With speech bubbles of course! You can draw them comic book style or practice creating new patterns using a basic speech bubble shape.

217. Farm or Barn Scene

The Barn is an iconic image of the countryside, and no wonder – these giant buildings serve as a place to store farm equipment and provide shelter to animals. Draw a barn!

218. Labyrinth

A labyrinth is a meandering path that leads to the center of a shape. Traditionally circular in nature, they are often used in common times for reflection and meditation.

Go fly a kite! And if there’s no wind or you don’t have a kite, you can always draw one! Again, there are so many different shapes and types here to choose from!

220. Astronaut

Remember that rocket ship you drew in prompt number 54? What about the person flying that thing? Draw a picture of the astronaut brave enough to travel in your spacecraft.

Balls of yarn can be a fun challenge to draw, especially when you get into different types of hand spun yarns or art yarn!

Go ahead, take a chance…and draw some dice! Did you know there are more dice than just the average 6-sided dice? They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, as I learned from playing Dungeons & Dragons.

223. Pumpkins

You can draw a pumpkin patch, a fall themed still life display, or maybe even carve out a face on your pumpkin and create a jack-o-lantern!

224. Flooring

Have you ever spent time staring at the floor? I know that sounds sarcastic, but you might just be surprised how many different textures and patterns exist on what we walk all over every single day.

225. Scene from a Dream

Have any crazy dreams lately? Illustrate a scene from a dream in your sketchbook. Bonus? You can interpret what that dream means based on the image you drew!

Imagine a bench. Who is sitting on it? Draw it!

227. Garden

There are so many different things you can draw for a garden, whether its a vegetable garden or a flower garden or maybe just a peaceful place outside surrounded by plants.

228. Blue Jeans

Get a pair of blue jeans out from your closet and try putting them in different poses on a table or the floor and draw what you see.

229. Wild West Scene

Cowboys, outlaws, and a good saloon make for the perfect backdrop for a wild west scene you could draw.

230. Children playing

Kids are always a source of inspiration to draw, especially when they are playing.

231. Silhouette

Silhouettes are outlines of an object, person or place. Try drawing silhouettes of people in different poses, or draw silhouettes of everyday objects around the house.

Hopefully there are no mice in your house – but they are cute, when they don’t sneak up on you! You could draw a realistic mouse, or draw personified mice characters who live in their own burrow in a meadow.

233. Baby/Infant

Like kids, babies are another great source for portrait photos. You can use a baby you know as inspiration, or dig out those old photos of you as a baby when you were new to this world.

I’d never want to see a hippo close in real life {I hear they can be very aggressive and dangerous!} but I’m definitely okay with drawing them!

When the cold wind blows you get ice! You can draw icicles hanging from the eaves of a roof, or maybe even ice cubes that are guaranteed not to melt.

236. Favorite Animated/Cartoon Character

When I was in the second grade I was so lucky to take a cartooning class where I learned to draw Mickey Mouse, Snoopy, and more. Do you have a favorite cartoon character or anime character? Try to draw them as close as the original as you can.

237. Camera

So often as artists we use reference photos to inspire our work, but we forget the camera itself can be a great drawing idea!

238. Mad Scientist’s Lab

Think bubbling potions, beakers, and oh my, what’s that monster doing under the sheet over there in the corner?

239. Wood Texture

Wood grain can be a beautiful texture to draw, especially in pencil, ink, or charcoal. There are so many options for patterns and shading!

240. Gnomes

Who doesn’t love garden gnomes? Maybe they’re tacky, but I think they’re the perfect thing to draw – especially if you draw them in different clothes and styles.

241. Life Underground

Most of the time we think about life on the surface of earth, but there’s all sorts of things that happen underground, from coal mines to subway train stations to fault lines and magma…what world do you imagine? Draw it!

Ever hear the phrase, I’m all ears? Now’s your chance to illustrate it!

We drive in cars every day and there are so many different types we see on the road. You can choose to draw your first car, your current car, or the cars you see passing by on the street near where you live.

244. Holiday scenes

There’s so many holidays we celebrate around the world – you can choose from Easter, Halloween, Christmas, Fourth of July or maybe even St. Patrick’s Day.

245. Song Lyrics

Do you have a favorite song? Illustrate a scene from the song, or practice your hand-lettering by drawing a quote of the lyrics.

246. Parking Lot

Parking lots might not sound like that exciting of an idea for drawing, but you can be surprised what happens in them! They are great places for people watching, or you could sketch the scene of one to continue a series of drawings of places around where you live.

247. Movie Scene

What’s your favorite movie? Draw a scene from a movie you love or have watched recently.

248. Xylophone

Xylophone is pretty much the only word we could think of that begins with the letter X, so it made our list. 🙂

249. City Street Scene

Walk around the city and sketch the sights on the street.

250. Award or Trophy

Have you ever been given a trophy or award for an achievement? You could also draw trophies or awards for your pets or friends, like “Best Listener” or “Most Furry”.

Look up to the night sky and draw the stars. You could also research and draw different constellations.

From dump trucks to tractor trailer trucks to pick-up trucks, there are all kinds of trucks you can draw. Above is a picture of a pick-up my brother drew.

253. Skeleton or Skull

Skeletons and skulls might be creepy to some, but they can be a lot less scary if you opt to draw a sugar skull from the Mexican Day of the Dead holiday.

Bird watchers know there are thousands of different species of birds, which means you have a lot of options here! To keep things simple, try drawing birds that are native to where you live and can be found regularly in your backyard and parks.

255. Friend

Ask a friend for a photo or see if they would be willing to pose while you draw a portrait of them.

256. Cleaning Supplies

Fact: It’s more fun to draw cleaning supplies than it is to actually do the laundry, dishes, and other household chores.

257. Wheels

From wagon wheels to car rims, there are all sorts of different types of wheels you could draw. You could also use wheels as a base for making repetitive patterns.

258. Sled Ride

Have you ever been on a sled in the winter? You can draw kids sledding or draw an old fashioned Christmas sleigh!

What’s behind that door? You can draw the door of your house, or draw a door that captures your eye and makes you want to open it…or avoid it.

260. Diamonds

Diamonds are easy things to draw and you can play with all sorts of different patterns and repetitions with them.

261. Favorite Things

What are your favorite things in the whole wide world? Draw them!

Waves are a very cool thing you can draw, whether its realistic waves in the ocean, or simply waves of lines that create a pattern.

263. School

Draw a picture of what you remember school looked like when you were a kid, or draw all the school supplies you remember needing.

264. Abandoned Warehouse

Abandoned warehouses are cool architecture places to draw, just remember that you shouldn’t actually go into an abandoned warehouse without proper permission and safety clearances – it can be VERY dangerous!

265. Cooking Spices

What’s on your spice rack? Draw it!

266. Favorite Place From Your Childhood

What is a place you remember from your childhood? It can be any place you visited that brings back happy memories.

267. Vase of Flowers

The classic still life is the perfect opportunity to practice drawing!

268. Vacation Spot

Think back on all of the places you’ve visited and vacationed at over the years. Draw a scene of one of your favorite spots!

269. News Headline

Look to the news today and draw a headline from the current events.

270. Village

Draw a whimsical village of cute little houses.

Artists like Van Gogh are famous for painting a chair, so get your start by drawing one!

Horses are incredible creatures admired for the beauty and strength. Draw wild horses or someone riding a horse.

273. Drum Set

Not everybody has room for a drum set in their house or the talent to play one, but you can always draw one!

274. Exercise Poses

Draw a figure in different exercise poses, such as yoga or aerobics.

275. Something That Smells Nice

What’s your favorite smell? Draw something that you think smells nice.

276. Illustrate Onomatopoeia Words

Onomatopoeia words are words that are spelled exactly like they sound – and they can be fun to illustrate. Some example words are splash, buzz, pop, fizz, and swish.

277. Detective

Take inspiration from Sherlock Holmes and draw a detective on the case to solve the next mystery.

278. Mythological Creatures

Centaur, griffins, and manticores are all examples of different types of mythological creatures you could draw in your journal.

Draw a game board, game pieces or make up a design that could be used on your very own deck of illustrated cards.

280. Picnic

Set the scene for the perfect picnic lunch – hopefully there won’t be any ants to ruin the fun!

With over 200 owl species to choose from, you could draw a barn owl, a snowy owl, or great horned owl. The above picture my daughter drew when she was six.

282. Your Favorite Decade

Draw a scene from your favorite decade, whether it’s the roaring 1920’s or the fun and colorful 1980’s.

283. Flash Light

No need to stay in the dark – you can draw your own light with a flash light!

284. Bathroom Cabinet

Draw your toothbrush, a bar of soap, or anything else you may regularly keep in your bathroom cabinets.

Idioms are expressions and phrases that generally don’t make any literal sense in the real world…one example being it’s raining cats and dogs. Illustrate a silly idiom or other expression that we don’t take literally. You can find more idioms at the Free Dictionary Idiom Search .

286. Rock Star

Everybody thinks about becoming a rock star at some point, take inspiration from one of your favorite artists or bands or draw yourself rocking out to your favorite kind of music.

287. Party Animals

Draw animals going to a party. Don’t forget their party hats!

What’s hiding up in the attic of that old house? Draw it!

289. Happy Couple

Draw a couple that is happy and in love together.

290. Neighborhood

Sketch a street scene from your local neighborhood.

291. Bar or Restaurant

Where’s the last place you’ve eaten or gone out to? Draw a picture of the exterior or interior of the building.

292. Time Machine

Time machines don’t exist yet, but here’s your chance to design one that will help you travel back and forth in time.

293. Runner

They say life is a marathon and not a sprint…unless a lion is chasing you. Draw someone who is running from something, or maybe they are competing in a 5k or marathon.

294. Treehouse

Wouldn’t it be great to live in a treehouse for a day? Design and draw a Pete Nelson worthy treehouse for you to escape to.

295. Museum

Museums are full of interesting artifacts from history. Visit a museum near you or do a virtual tour of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History online here .

Boxes can be empty or they can be full of surprises. You can draw just one box or a whole stack of them!

Draw a humanoid-like robot, or draw a robot straight out of a science fiction movie. Cartoon robots are also always fun!

Drawing glass can be a fun way to explore drawing reflections and shadows.

299. Mechanic’s Garage

Draw a mechanic’s garage with cars needing repaired.

300. Helicopter

Did you know the fastest speed of a helicopter ever recorded is 248 mph? That’s crazy!

301. Brick Wall

Brick patterns are a great idea for something to draw.

302. Lighthouse

Lighthouses help keep sailors and ships safe while out at sea. They are also beautiful tourist attractions all around the world.

303. Gifts and Presents

Did you receive any gifts or presents recently? Draw them! You could also draw wrapped presents.

304. Christmas Tree

Deck the halls and put up a Christmas tree, in your art journal or sketchbook at least! Not Christmas time or don’t celebrate Christmas? You could always decorate your tree to be more to your liking.

Towers have been used historically for many different reasons, and they stand tall along the skyline. Draw one!

There are so many famous hotels you could choose to draw, or draw the outside of the last hotel you stayed at.

307. Ant Farm

Ants build the most fascinating tunnels in ant farms. Illustrate an ant farm to show their secret lives in their homes.

308. Battle

You could draw a historic battle or you could draw a fantasy battle between an ogre and a dragon.

309. Waterfall

There are so many waterfalls in the world, experts can’t even agree how many there are! They are beautiful cascading natural elements perfect for sketching.

310. Remote Control

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a remote control that does everything? Take inspiration from the remote control you have for your TV or design your own with custom buttons you could use in your life.

311. Bakery

Cakes, cookies, bread…mmmm…all of my favorite foods can be found at a bakery, so draw one!

312. Suitcase

Packing to go somewhere? You could draw a suitcase ready to travel the world, or draw yours.

We live on this great big earth, so draw it.

314. Mandala

A mandala is a geometric figure that represents the universe. They are often used for meditative purposes and can be so relaxing to draw.

315. Cassette Tape

Am I showing my age here? Even if everything is digital today, cassette tapes are still cool to draw in my book.

316. Antique Car

Cars from the 1900’s look a lot different than the ones we drive today! Draw an antique or classic car that was manufactured before 1970.

317. Castle

You drew the queen and king in prompt number 177, now where are they going to live? Draw a castle fit for royalty, or take inspiration from one of the famous 500+ castles that already exist in the world.

318. Lightning

Lightning can be mesmerizing and the earth is struck by lightning an estimated 1,400,000,000 times a year – now that’s electrifying!

319. Snakes

Some people are scared of snakes, but the best way to overcome that fear is to draw one on paper. Besides, it’s your imagination – you can make the snake a friendly, non-biting one!

I heard you can really draw a crowd…haha…I know, that’s a terribly punny joke but I couldn’t resist.

Swords are often seen in coats of armor and in historical fiction stories like the sword in the stone…try drawing one!

322. Compass

Which way north? Draw a compass rose.

Pigs are very intelligent creatures…and they are cute!

Be careful if you drew three pigs in the last prompt, this could get hairy and become the story of three little pigs quick, which doesn’t end too well for the wolf.

325. Anchor

Anchors are symbols of strength and safety and often used in logos and tattoo designs.

Who doesn’t love a good donut? Draw your favorite flavor donut.

327. Hummingbird

Hummingbirds are very fast to see in real life, but they are beautiful birds to draw.

328. Statues and Sculptures

Draw your own life-like statue or sculpture, or try to draw a realistic rendition of a famous statue such as The Statue of Liberty or the sculpture of Discobolus .

329. Zipper

Zippers are something we use all the time, and they are fun to draw! You can also use the basic shape of a zipper for all sorts of pattern drawing ideas!

330. Television Set

You can draw a retro TV set or draw a more modern day version of a smart TV.

That alien that you drew in prompt #25…what kind of spacecraft were they flying? Draw an unidentified flying object.

332. Scarecrow

Scarecrows are not really all that useful for scaring away crows, but they have become an iconic decoration around the fall and autumn season.

One of the popular games for kids to play in the woods is to go snipe hunting…of course you never find one because snipes don’t exist. No one knows what a snipe really is, but this is your chance to imagine what one would look like if it were real.

334. Chameleon

Chameleons are best known for being able to change their colors to blend into their environment. This is a great opportunity to practice shading or draw with multiple colors.

335. Jellyfish

The nice thing about drawing a jellyfish on paper is they can’t sting you! While you’d never want to get too close to one in real life, they are beautifully amazing creatures of the sea.

336. Unicorn

A unicorn is a mythical creature that looks much like a horse with a single horn on its forehead. They are often depicted in art and folklore, making it the perfect drawing prompt.

Tulips mean spring is coming, and they are fun beautiful flowers to draw in any weather or season. Because they are bulbs, you can even force them to grow in the winter like I did with my flowers. See my post on the seasons of being an artist .

338. Pinwheel

Pinwheels are toys that twirl around when someone blows on them. They are symbolically seen as a way of “turing one’s luck around” and often signify playfulness and happiness.

339. Palm Tree

Did you know palm trees are actually evergreen trees? They are characterized by broad fan-like leaves and usually found in tropical regions around the world.

340. Rainforests

Rainforests are home to thousands of exotic plant species and animals and are typically found around the earth’s equator.

341. Deserted Island

What would you do if you were stuck on a deserted island? What would it look like? I hope you brought a notebook and pencil!

342. Snowflakes

No two snowflakes are alike, and you can have so much fun drawing different patterns and designs of snowflakes.

343. Ball or Sphere

Balls and spheres are a great opportunity to play around with drawing different shadow angles and light sources.

344. Goldfish

Goldfish are easy to draw and are a favorite pet for many people.

345. DNA Helix

It’s crazy to think we have DNA and I even recently just did a DNA test on Ancestry.com – it’s so fascinating to me to trace back all of my ancestors. Drawing the helix is a great way to practice different shading techniques as well.

One of my favorite songs is You Are the Moon by the Hush Sound , and I can’t think but illustrating a beautiful moonlit landscape everytime I hear it.

347. Trapeze Artist

Trapeze artists are highly skilled entertainers who perform all sorts of aerial tricks on ropes. Often seen at circuses, many modern artists can be seen in cities and other places.

348. Atoms and Molecules

You don’t have to be a chemistry major to recognize that atoms and molecule diagrams can be fascinating subjects for drawing ideas!

349. Carousel

I’ve always loved merry go round carousel rides and still ride them even now whenever I get a chance. You can choose to draw the whole carousel or just draw a carousel horse.

350. Cabin or Cottage in the Woods

Draw your own artists retreat place in the form of a cabin or cottage in the woods.

351. Buttons

Buttons make for great doodles, or you can always draw a magic button that you can push for when things go awry.

352. Pot of Gold

What’s at the end of your rainbow from prompt #153? Shamrock optional.

353. Doctor’s Office

Have you ever noticed all the different things they have at the doctor’s office when you go in for a check-up?

354. Panda Bear

Panda bears are just cute and that is why you should draw one.

355. Building Blocks

Building blocks are a great way to play with different angles, lines, and shadows.

356. Ferris Wheel

Ferris wheels are popular carnival rides and a great thing to draw.

357. Turkey

You can draw a turkey – it’s as simple as tracing your hand. Of course, you could always opt to draw a turkey that’s a bit more realistic.

358. Lollipops and Candy

Craving something sweet? Draw a lollipop or another favorite type of Candy.

You could draw a city bus, a school bus, or even a double-decker bus.

360. Flamingo

Flamingos are graceful birds most well known for their ability to balance on just one leg.

361. Ukulele

Ukulele’s only have 4 strings and are smaller and higher pitched than a guitar. Both of my daughters play the Ukulele!

362. Strawberry

Strawberries are amazingly detailed when you look at one up close, making them a great option for a close-up sketch.

363. Sandcastle

Did you know people build sandcastles at a competitive level? It’s amazing what architects, engineers, and creative designers and make out of sand at sand castle competitions!

364. Record Player

We may not play records that often anymore, but they are still a totally fun vintage thing to draw.

365. Magic Wand

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a magic wand? Well, you can always draw one!

I hope you enjoyed this list of 365 Drawing Ideas and of course if you create any of these things to draw I would love to see it in our Artjournalist Facebook community group !

Do you have any ideas for things to draw that I might have missed? I’d love to hear your ideas and how you will use these drawing prompts – tell me in the comments below!

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19 Comments

How about flowers

she said sunflowers which are technically flowers

great list of inspiration

This was a wonderful list

i like these thanks for curing my dreadful boredom 😃😄😊

I’ve read a lot of lists for drawing prompts, this one is by far the best! Thank you so much! I’m sure it took some time to come up with all of these!!

I’m glad you’re enjoying them!

Can you please share some painting ideas?

Sounds like a great idea Amy, I will get on it 🙂

great list i cant wait to fill lots of sketchbooks up with ideas oh also how about fidget toys they are great to draw

Hmm cant think of any! It sure helped me. I run art contests every week and like gettin opinions from people on themes, seeing this I may never have trouble picking a theme again! lol😂

I was stuck trying to think of ideas of what to draw during a pandemic. Thanks for all the great ideas. I better get started, I have hundreds of drawings to do. Joyce

Glad it inspired you Joyce!

I actually had a drawing competition in my school and the topic was “dreaming with eyes open” and this really helped thanks!

thanks for this great list of inspiration. defiantly cured my boredom. I really liked the coffee idea. i made a really good painting for my kitchen with it. it says: “Key To My Morning. it is is painting of a blue coffee cup, with i red back round. my parents drink coffe every morning so i made it for them.

you should add hallway

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General Arrangement Drawings 101: Understanding the Importance of GA Drawings

• Updated: April 18, 2024

(GA) General Arrangement drawings, a critical element in design and construction processes across various industries, offer a comprehensive perspective of a structure or object.

These drawings provide an overview that shows how different components fit together to create a complete whole.

They essentially give life to the concept , transitioning an idea from mere thought into a tangible representation that can be further developed and eventually materialized.

The primary purpose of GA drawings is not just to visually display the overall layout of a building , structure, or piece of equipment.

They serve as crucial reference documents for engineers , architects , and designers throughout the design, construction, and even the maintenance stages of a project.

From showing the location of an assembly within an overall design to indicating the key dimensions and relationships between different parts, GA drawings act as a universal language that bridges the gap between conception and creation.

In this article, we will delve into the intricacies of GA drawings – how they’re created, understood, applied in practical scenarios, and standardized across the industry.

Understanding General Arrangement Drawings

General Arrangement drawings, sometimes also referred to as ‘location drawings’, provide an essential overview of an object or structure. These drawings offer comprehensive detail about the design, including a depiction of all parts and components, their exact locations, and how they fit together.

The object in question could be as small as a piece of equipment or as large as a multi-storied building. The level of detail and the number of different projections (such as plans , sections, and elevations) in a GA drawing depend on the complexity of the object or structure.

Different Types of Views in GA Drawings

GA drawings typically include various views to provide a complete understanding of the structure or object. These views commonly include orthographic projections and pictorial views.

Orthographic projections include plans (views from above), sections (views of a cross-section along a particular line), and elevations (views from the side).

These projections are dimensionally accurate and are used to gauge the exact measurements and orientations of different components.

On the other hand, pictorial views, like isometric drawings, offer a three-dimensional perspective. While these views may not be to scale or provide exact dimensions, they are valuable in visualizing the overall assembly and orientation of components, providing a more intuitive understanding of the structure or object.

Notation and Symbols in GA Drawings

General Arrangement drawings often include a variety of notations and symbols to communicate additional information about particular elements. These can indicate details like the material of a component, its position, or any specific treatments it may have undergone.

However, to avoid confusion, these symbols and notations need to be consistent and in line with industry standards. An understanding of this standard notation is crucial for accurately interpreting a GA drawing.

Moreover, the scale used in the drawings, which dictates the level of detail conveyed, also forms a significant part of understanding GA drawings.

The Creation Process of GA Drawings

The creation of general arrangement (GA) drawings begins in the preliminary design stages of a project.

This process is initiated once the overall design concept is established and basic design parameters are decided upon, such as the size, functionality, and configuration of the structure or object.

Creating a 3D Model for GA Drawing Generation

The next step involves developing a 3D model of the structure or object. This model serves as a basis for the General Arrangement drawings, providing a comprehensive view of the project.

Typically, a designer or engineer uses design software to create this model, considering all elements like the placement of structures, components, and equipment.

It’s crucial to note that this initial model is often conceptual and may be subject to changes as the project advances and more detailed engineering calculations are performed.

Evolution and Increasing Detail of GA Drawings as Project Progresses

As the design evolves and more specific information becomes available, the GA drawings are continually updated and refined. This iterative process involves adding more details, such as the exact dimensions, orientations, and relationships between different components.

General Arrangement drawings are prepared at each stage of the design, showing the overall relationship between the main elements.

The level of detail will increase as the project progresses, and they may need to be supplemented by more detailed drawings showing specific elements and assemblies.

Use of CAD Software and BIM Technology

Traditionally, General Arrangement drawings were produced by hand, but today, this process has been greatly improved with the use of Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software.

CAD allows for more accurate and detailed drawings, saving time and reducing potential errors. More recently, Building Information Modelling (BIM) technology is being adopted.

BIM offers a dynamic 3D model-based process that provides insights to help plan, design, construct, and manage buildings and infrastructures more efficiently.

General arrangement drawings can then be generated from the BIM model, providing a higher level of detail and a more comprehensive understanding of the project.

How to Read and Interpret GA Drawings

Understanding orthographic views.

Orthographic views are a key aspect of general arrangement drawings. These views represent different faces of a structure, displayed as though the viewer is looking directly onto that face.

Typically, GA drawings include top, front, and side views, each providing crucial information about the building or object’s dimensions, positions of elements, and spatial relationships.

These views are two-dimensional, and their purpose is to depict the exact size and shape of parts and their features.

Learning to read orthographic projections involves understanding the scale of the drawing, which should be clearly indicated, and interpreting the dimensions, notation, and symbols correctly.

Understanding Pictorial Views

In addition to orthographic views, GA drawings often include pictorial views, the most common of which is the isometric view. These offer a more intuitive way to visualize the overall structure as they represent a three-dimensional perspective.

While they don’t generally provide precise dimensions due to their nature, isometric views provide a valuable visual aid that helps to understand how the various components fit together in the overall design.

These views are especially helpful for non-technical stakeholders who may find orthographic projections harder to interpret.

Understanding Notation, Symbols, and Scales

GA drawings employ various symbols, notations, and scales to convey important information. Standardized symbols are used to represent specific components or features, while notations can provide additional details such as materials, finishes, or specific assembly instructions.

Understanding these symbols and notations often requires reference to a key or legend included in the drawing.

The scale of the drawing is another critical element to understand. The scale indicates the ratio between the size of the drawing and the size of the actual object or structure.

This allows the viewer to understand the true size of the object and to make accurate measurements from the drawing. The scale should be clearly marked on the drawing.

Understanding and interpreting GA drawings, therefore, requires a combination of reading precise measurements from orthographic views, visualizing the overall arrangement from pictorial views, and correctly interpreting the notation, symbols, and scales used.

Together, these allow a complete and accurate understanding of the structure or object being represented.

Practical Applications of General Arrangement Drawings

General arrangement drawings serve as essential tools in various applications, significantly contributing to the success of design and construction processes, as well as post-construction activities.

Use in Design and Construction Processes

From the initial design to the final construction stages, GA drawings play a pivotal role. They offer a holistic view of the project, allowing engineers, architects, and construction professionals to visualize how all components will fit together in the completed structure.

During the design phase, GA drawings are vital in facilitating discussions among stakeholders. They provide a detailed overview of the project, prompting constructive conversations on design choices and potential improvements.

They enable comprehensive planning, ensuring that all elements of the structure – from the overall layout down to the individual components – are carefully considered and appropriately positioned.

Once construction commences, GA drawings serve as crucial guides on the ground. They provide precise dimensions and locations for each part of the structure, directing construction workers in the accurate placement and assembly of components.

Role in Equipment Verification, Assembly, and Integration

General arrangement drawings are also indispensable for equipment verification.

They detail the dimensions, weights, and orientations of individual components, enabling professionals to verify whether each piece of equipment has been manufactured to the correct specifications and installed in the right location.

Further, these drawings depict the assembly and integration of all system components. Should issues arise or parts need replacement, GA drawings can be used to identify the problematic components and guide the repair or replacement process.

Importance in Maintenance, Repairs, and Modifications

Beyond the design and construction phases, GA drawings remain relevant in the lifespan of a structure. They serve as vital references during maintenance and repair works, helping to pinpoint exact locations of components and understand their interrelations within the system.

In the event of modifications or renovations, GA drawings provide a detailed record of the original design . They enable architects and engineers to understand the existing structure thoroughly, ensuring that any changes or additions are integrated seamlessly.

In conclusion, general arrangement drawings are not just documents created during the design process.

They serve as comprehensive guides from the design stage through construction, and well into the life of the structure, contributing to its efficient operation, maintenance, and potential adaptation.

Standardization in GA Drawings

The importance of uniformity and consistency in creating and interpreting General Arrangement (GA) drawings cannot be overstated. Standardization plays a key role in ensuring these elements, which is vital in avoiding costly errors, misinterpretations, and project delays.

Role of Standards like BS EN ISO 7519:1997

One of the most relevant standards in this context is BS EN ISO 7519:1997. This standard offers comprehensive guidelines on the general principles of presentation to be applied to construction drawings, including general arrangement and assembly drawings .

It provides instructions on how to present information, how to use symbols and notations, how to set out dimensions, and other key aspects.

Following this standard ensures that GA drawings are easy to read and interpret by all stakeholders involved, regardless of their location or cultural background.

Importance of Consistent Presentation and Clarity

In addition to facilitating interpretation, the standardization of GA drawings also promotes clarity. Different projects or companies may use varying terminologies, symbols, and notations. By adhering to industry standards, these elements become universally understandable.

The use of a common language in the form of standards helps prevent misunderstandings and ensures that all professionals involved in a project – from architects and engineers to builders and maintenance staff – are on the same page.

Moreover, standardization is particularly crucial when it comes to digital representation of GA drawings. With the increased use of CAD and BIM software, standards help ensure compatibility and interoperability across different software platforms and devices.

In conclusion, standardization is an integral part of the creation and use of GA drawings. It ensures that these important documents are accurate, clear, and easy to interpret, which is crucial in achieving project objectives efficiently and effectively.

Future updates to these standards are expected to further embrace technological advances and continue to ensure clarity and consistency in GA drawings.

To sum up…

General Arrangement (GA) drawings play a critical role in multiple industries, from architecture and civil engineering to industrial design. They offer a comprehensive representation of an object or structure, demonstrating the location and connection of all components.

The ability to visualize an entire assembly and its details, allows for more efficient design, construction, verification, and maintenance processes.

As we have seen, the creation of GA drawings has been significantly enhanced with technological advancements, particularly the use of 3D modeling, Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software, and Building Information Modeling (BIM) technology.

These tools not only expedite the drawing process but also increase the accuracy and detail captured in the drawings.

The ability to accurately interpret GA drawings, understanding the various views, notations, and symbols, is an invaluable skill for any professional involved in the design, construction, or maintenance of structures or equipment.

Adherence to recognized standards, such as BS EN ISO 7519:1997, ensures that GA drawings provide consistent, clear, and universally understandable information, promoting effective communication among all project stakeholders.

As technology continues to advance, we can anticipate further developments in how GA drawings are created and utilized. Tools like BIM are likely to become increasingly sophisticated, allowing for even more precise and detailed GA drawings.

Regardless of these advancements, the core purpose of GA drawings will remain the same: to provide a comprehensive, detailed, and clear overview of an object or structure, serving as an essential guide in design, construction, and beyond.

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Create impressive cover pages for your assignments and projects online in just a click. choose from hundreds of free templates and customize them with edit.org..

Create impressive cover pages in a few minutes with Edit.org, and give your projects and assignments a professional and unique touch. A well-designed title page or project front page can positively impact your professor's opinion of your homework, which can improve your final grade!

Create a personalized report cover page

After writing the whole report, dissertation, or paper, which is the hardest part, you should now create a cover page that suits the rest of the project. Part of the grade for your work depends on the first impression of the teacher who corrects it.

We know not everyone is a professional designer, and that's why Edit.org wants to help you. Having a professional title page can give the impression you've put a great deal of time and effort into your assignment, as well as the impression you take the subject very seriously. Thanks to Edit.org, everyone can become a professional designer. This way, you'll only have to worry about doing a great job on your assignment.

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Customize an essay cover page with Edit.org

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On Edit.org, you can also reuse all your designs and adapt them to different projects. Thanks to the users' internal memory, you can access and edit old templates anytime and anywhere.

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50 Visual Journal Prompts to Promote Drawing and Creative Thinking Skills

When I started at the secondary level, I quickly realized my students needed to be encouraged to practice their drawing and composition skills. Telling them to practice wasn’t cutting it, but I wasn’t sure what the best solution might be.

I wanted to hold my kiddos accountable for their learning in an enjoyable way. I came up with prompt-based weekly visual journal assignments. These assignments not only gave students inspiration to work on their technical skills, but also became important creative outlets. Plus, it allowed me to see how they were developing as artists. It was a win-win-win experience!

Let’s take a closer look at how visual journals promote drawing and creative thinking skills in an incredible way.

Introducing the Concept

In my room, my students and I started early in the year by discussing why artists keep journals. I focused on how my students’ journals could become a storehouse of ideas to pull from throughout the class. I told them the work they do in these journals could push their class projects to the next level.

Explaining the Rules

Then, I provided students with a handout that told them exactly how their journals would be assessed.

In my classroom, I looked for 3 things in each entry: 

• Direct observational drawing

There were no hard and fast rules on how much collage or text needed to be incorporated. However, I did encourage students to make at least 50 percent of the work drawing. This way, I knew they were practicing drawing from life. I also wanted them to work on arranging the work into creative compositions.

If you’re looking for ways to help students incorporate text into their work, you may want to check out the PRO Learning Pack, Implementing Sketchnotes in the Art Room found in PRO Learning . There is an entire section devoted to the art of typography!

Giving the Prompts

In my intro classes, I gave open-ended prompts such as, “Who Am I?” “Invent a New Object,” “When I Was Younger,” or “Kitchen Items.” I also made sure to build in a “Free Choice” week. I required all of their works be on a single page.

You can see how two students responded to the prompt, “Draw a chair,” below.

In contrast to my beginning students, my Art II students received single-word prompts. These were things like, “Me,” “Rip,” “See,” “Joy,” “Eat” or “Spirit.” I also required a two-page spread for each entry. The added challenge of making the work unified even with a spiral or binding holding the pages together is something that helped them when considering their class projects as well.

Here is how a few students handled the prompt, “Me.”

If you’d like to get started with visual journals in your room, download the list of 50 prompts below!

Download Now!

The Power of Modeling

I made sure I was working on my visual journals with the same prompt as often as possible. I think it’s important for our students to see us as artists, and working alongside them is a great way to model your expectations for your students.

Every few weeks we had a “Journal Day.” On these days, my students and I grabbed our journals and spent the class period working and chatting. It’s a great way to get to know students better!

The Logistics

If you’re working on a semester schedule, I suggest giving twelve to fourteen journal assignments. With my beginning students, each entry stood on its own. However, with older students you can take things to the next level by having them work with a theme. A theme adds another layer of critical thinking as they must figure out how to make the prompts connect. This is the type of divergent thinking experience we should be giving our students as often as possible!

You can also assign visual journals in courses where most of the work is 3-D. In my case, I implemented Art History Visual Journals so students could research and learn about the 3-D master artists that were on their county assessment final exam. These research-based journals were beautifully done, and when student test scores improved I knew we were onto something big!

How to Handle Grading

I was often asked, “How do you grade 188 visual journals a week?” I love this question because it’s one of the most fun aspects of this assignment.

I called students up to my stool every Monday during their studio class time, and we had a one-on-one conversation as we graded the work together using the rubric! If a student did an outstanding job, I snapped a photo and added it to a special Visual Journal Pinterest page.

You can check out a few links below!

• Visual Journals 2015-2016
• Visual Journals 2016-2017

We had wonderful chats about their progress. These quick meetings held students accountable, and I saw their work grow tremendously. They wanted good grades, they wanted to get better at their art skills, and they wanted me to snap a photo and put it on Pinterest! Each week, I found myself pinning more and more as students got stronger, which is the ultimate goal!

I used to love my Mondays because Mondays meant I had the opportunity to connect with my students as they shared their hard work with me via their visual journals. As I said, it’s a win-win-WIN activity!

How are you teaching visual journaling to your students?

Do you think using sketchbooks or journals is an important part of our student’s visual art education?

Magazine articles and podcasts are opinions of professional education contributors and do not necessarily represent the position of the Art of Education University (AOEU) or its academic offerings. Contributors use terms in the way they are most often talked about in the scope of their educational experiences.

Debi West is one of AOEU’s adjunct instructors and a former AOEU Writer and NBCT art educator. She loves sharing with others and enthusiastically stands behind her motto, “Together we ART better!”

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