Welcome! This blog post features a guided tutorial of how to draw a mandala. This technique is great for beginners. This activity helps artists to build skills applying the elements of art within a RADIALLY BALANCED design. Radial balance is when elements radiate from a centered point in an evenly distributed manner. While mandalas look very complex when complete, they are built by using a repetition of simple shapes and lines that can be drawn by anyone!
HEY EDUCATORS! SCROLL BELOW FOR A READY-FOR-THE-CLASSROOM LESSON OF THIS PROJECT!
MATERIALS LIST
- Drawing paper
- Protractor (pictured is the clear Westcott protractor)
- Compass. I recommend these compass drawing tools for beginners. #sponsored
- Ruler
- Pencil
- Eraser
- Drawing tools of your choice to outline and add color.This lesson can be finalized with so many different art materials ranging from colored pencils, shading pencils, watercolor, pastels, and so much more!
*NOTE* In this tutorial, added steps will be drawn in red. It is recommended that you draw these steps light. Draw it light ’til you get it right!*
STEP 1:
On a piece of drawing paper, draw a large circle. Use a compass or trace a circular object.
STEP 2:
Make a dot in the center of the circle. To be mathematically correct, use a straight ruler to measure the circle and divide it in half.
STEP 3:
Grab a protractor. Align the center middle mark of the protractor with the central dot you just made.
12 point radial symmetry means that the design has 12 repeating sections. To create a 12 point symmetry (as seen here), make marks at the following angles– 0, 30, 60, 90, 120, 150, and 180.
Another option is an 8 point symmetry with marks at the following angles- 0, 45, 90, 135, and 180.
STEP 4:
Align ruler to connect the lines to make a ‘+’ sign through your measurements. Draw these lines lightly as you may wish to erase them out later in the process.
Ensure that the marks are going through the middle point.
STEP 5:
Align the ruler to draw diagonal lines through the remaining marks.
STEP 6:
Next, create some lightly drawn ‘bullseyes’ using a compass. This will help to ensure your mandala is not off balance. I recommend drawing at least 5 bullseyes, but you can do more if you wish.
STEP 7:
There are two approaches for creating a mandala. One method is to draw an entire piece of the pie and ‘copy and paste’ by hand into each section. My preferred method is to work within each bullseye, radiating outward.
Seen here is a sketch of the first bullseye.
Some artists like to use pencil and then outline everything with marker. It saves time, however, to jump right in with the marker and make marks mindfully and patiently to get it right the first time. Find the approach that works best for you.
STEP 8:
A helpful tip to ensure your drawings are balanced as you radiate outwards into larger sections is to make marks to divide sections in half (as pictured).
STEP 9:
Use your marks to guide your drawings to ensure radial balance.
STEP 10:
Continue to work outwards.
STEP 11:
Explore a variety of shapes ranging from geometric and organic. Explore how to repeat shapes to create a sense of visual unity. Explore repeated patterns to build intricacy within the mandala.
STEP 12:
When ready, erase out any unwanted pencil lines, such as your bullseye and symmetry lines.
STEP 13:
Explore adding color with a tool of your choice. Consider a color scheme that unifies the design such as analogous colors, warm colors, cool colors, complimentary colors and more!
STEP 14:
Consider exploring line weight, which is the thickness of your line. Add intricate details with a finer line to vary the line weight.
STEP 15:
Continue to explore line weight by adding thicker lines. Consider areas to fill solid black to build visual contrast.
Voila… the mandala is complete!
Hey teachers!* Click here for my TpT shop if you’re interested in this lesson, which features a full slideshow presentation and a project specific grading rubric.
Thanks for checking out this blog post. I would love to see your creation if you use these steps to create your own mandala. Feel free to tag me on Instagram and possibly get featured in this site! Also, please follow Make a Mark Studios on Facebook to keep up with the latest posts! Thanks in advance!
-Stephanie Villiotis, creator of Make a Mark Studios