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Angel Drawing Ideas

One angel or pair of wings to draw per press, with a hint on how to build it.

Angel Drawing Ideas

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  1. A pair of spread wings, mirror imagesFold the paper, draw one wing against the fold and trace it through for the other.

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Wings 18

  • A pair of spread wings, mirror images Fold the paper, draw one wing against the fold and trace it through for the other.
  • A simple wing from three rows of scallops Small feathers at the top, longer ones below them, the longest along the bottom edge.
  • A single wing feather, drawn life-size One curved shaft, then barbs slanting from it toward the tip. Split the edge in two places.
  • A wing in four stages, from bone line to feather A bird's wing has a shoulder, a forearm and a hand. Draw that bent line, then flesh, then feathers in rows.
  • A wing shaded with curved hatching only No outlines. Let each stroke follow the bend of its feather, darker where one row lies under another.
  • A wing tip, close up Five long feathers overlapping like a hand of cards. Each one hides half of the next.
  • A wing whose feathers turn into leaves at the tips Change one feather at a time across the wing, so no one can say where the leaves begin.
  • A wing with its feather groups labeled On a bird, primaries grow from the hand and secondaries from the forearm. Coverts lie over them.
  • A wing's shadow on a wall No wing in the picture, only its shadow: a soft gray shape with a fringed lower edge.
  • One folded wing, seen from the side Close the long feathers like a fan, tips pointing back. Short coverts overlap them on top.
  • One wing stretched out, the other folded The stretched wing is far wider than the folded one. Lean the figure a little toward the open side.
  • The small feathers at the bend of a wing A bird's wing has a little group on its front edge called the alula. Add it and the wing looks studied.
  • Spread wings from below, the tip feathers parted On soaring birds the primaries at the wing tip separate, with slots of sky between them.
  • Wings far too small for the figure wearing them Sparrow-sized wings on broad shoulders. Keep the face calm; the wings are the joke.
  • Wings foreshortened, one coming toward you The near wing is short, wide and dark. The far wing is long and pale behind the shoulder.
  • Wings half open, about to lift Elbows out, tips still pointing down. The figure is up on its toes.
  • Wings seen from behind, rising from the shoulder blades Start each wing as a thick root beside the spine. The feathers begin a hand's width out.
  • Wings wrapped around the body like a cloak The two wing tips cross at the shins. Only a face and the toes show.

Angels in art and stone 18

  • A broken stone wing on a museum shelf A fragment with one clean break. A small card beside it gives the scale.
  • A flat gold disc behind a head in profile The plainest halo to draw: a full circle, with the head placed a little below its center.
  • A halo as a thin ring, tilted In art a halo is a ring or disc of light around the head. Tilted, the ring becomes an ellipse.
  • A row of angel musicians: lute, harp and trumpet Three figures, three hand positions. Overlap the wings so the row reads as one shape.
  • A sandaled foot stepping off a cloud The toes point down and the heel lifts. The cloud dents a little where the other foot still stands.
  • A statue of an angel in a three-minute gesture sketch One line for the lean of the body, two sweeps for the wings. Stop when the time is up.
  • A stone angel on a garden plinth, moss on one wing Give the stone flat gray planes and let the moss break the edge of the wing with soft dots.
  • A stone angel seen from below, against the sky The feet and the hem are large, the head small. Leave the sky white and the stone dark.
  • A stone angel's face, eyes lowered Carved eyes have no color, so the lids do the work. Shade under the brow and the lower lip.
  • A winged child leaning on its elbows In art this chubby winged child is called a putto, and often a cherub. Chin on one hand, eyes turned up.
  • An angel carved in low relief on a door panel The figure rises only a little from the wood. Run the grain lines straight through the background.
  • An angel figure on the lid of a music box A small figure on a round base, arms out. Draw the key on the side of the box.
  • An angel in a stained-glass window The pieces of colored glass are held by strips of lead. Draw the lead lines first, as a dark net.
  • An angel in profile on a round medal Low relief: shade only one side of each raised edge. Wings fit the curve of the rim.
  • An angel in the border of an old manuscript Flat color, a firm dark outline and a little gold. The wings can be striped like a rainbow.
  • An angel weathervane with a trumpet A weathervane sits on a building's highest point. Draw the figure flat, like cut metal, above an arrow.
  • The folds of an angel's robe, falling from a belt Folds start at the belt as narrow pipes and widen toward the hem. Shade one side of each.
  • Two winged children carrying a garland Each holds one end, and the garland sags between them. Turn one figure toward you and one away.

Christmas angels 18

  • A brass candle chime, angels turning above the flames Candles below, a fan of blades above them and small flat angels hanging from the fan.
  • A clothespin angel with lace wings The round top of the pin is the head. Lace is a row of small arches with holes.
  • A felt angel hanging from a bare twig Stitches show as short dashes around the edge. The thread loop goes over the twig.
  • A gingerbread angel with one wing nibbled A bite is a row of small curves. Scatter three crumbs below it.
  • A handprint angel, two handprints for wings Fingers point outward and up. A triangle between them is the gown and a circle the head.
  • A pair of costume wings on a hanger backstage Elastic shoulder loops hang down. Behind them, a rail of other costumes in shadow.
  • A paper angel taped to a window, snow outside The paper is light against a dark pane. Flakes pass behind it and none in front.
  • A paper chain of angels holding hands Fold, draw half an angel on the fold and cut. In the drawing, show the creases between each figure.
  • A row of small angels in a school play, one waving Same costume, six different ways of standing. The halos have slipped to different angles.
  • A salt-dough angel, cracked from the oven Thick, with rounded edges and a hole punched at the top for a ribbon. A few fine cracks cross the gown.
  • A school-play angel costume with a tinsel halo A white sheet with a neck hole, cardboard wings and a wire ring wrapped in tinsel. Draw it on a hanger.
  • A straw angel tied with red thread Bundles of straw fan out for the gown and wings. Draw the stalks as close parallel lines.
  • A wire halo on a headband, left on a chair A ring held up by one stalk of wire. The tinsel is a fuzzy outline around it.
  • An angel cookie with icing wings A flat shape with soft corners. Pipe the wing lines in white and add two dots for eyes.
  • An angel on a card front, holding one candle Light the face and hands from the flame. Everything farther from it gets darker.
  • An angel ornament reflected in a shiny glass ball The reflection bends around the curve and stretches at the edges. Add the window as a bright square.
  • An angel-shaped cookie cutter A band of metal seen from above. The outline is all there is, so make it clean.
  • Three singing angels sharing one songbook Three open mouths at three heights. The one in the middle holds the book.

Small and symbolic 18

  • A candle whose smoke curls into a wing The smoke rises as one line, then opens into feather shapes. Keep it paler than the candle.
  • A child's shadow with wings The child has none. The shadow on the sidewalk does, and stretches long in low sun.
  • A china angel with a mended wing A thin line of gold shows where the wing was glued. Shade the glaze with one bright highlight.
  • A cloud shaped like a wing over a field Soft on the top edge and streaked below, like feathers. One fence line gives the ground.
  • A feather breaking into small birds at its tip The barbs loosen, then lift off as tiny bird shapes. Keep the lower half of the feather whole.
  • A half-made snow angel, one arm still sweeping Lying on your back, arms sweep up and down for wings and legs side to side for the gown.
  • A halo and a pair of wings with nobody between them Leave the middle of the page empty. The gap is the figure.
  • A locket with a wing on each half Open, it looks like a butterfly. Put a small hinge between the halves and a ring at the top.
  • A paper angel bookmark peeking out of a book Only the head and the wing tops show above the pages. Give the book a title on its spine.
  • A single feather on a windowsill Lay it across the sill with its tip over the edge. One thin shadow underneath lifts it off the wood.
  • A small pair of wings as a charm on a chain Each wing is a teardrop with three lines in it. The chain is a row of tiny linked ovals.
  • A trumpet resting on a cloud A long straight tube and a flared bell. The cloud holds it like a cushion.
  • A wall painted with wings, a gap left for a person Two tall wings in brushed strokes on brick. Draw the brick courses through the paint.
  • An angel from a circle, a triangle and two leaf shapes Circle for the head, triangle for the gown, a leaf on each side. Four shapes and it is done.
  • An angel in one continuous line Start at the hem, go up one side, around the wing, over the head and back down.
  • An envelope sealed with a wing-shaped stamp A plain rectangle with a pointed flap. The seal sits where the flap ends: one small wing in a circle.
  • An open hand holding a tiny pair of wings The hand is the hard part: cup the palm and overlap the fingers. The wings weigh nothing.
  • Feathers falling in a slow spiral Seven or eight feathers, each turned a little more than the last. The lowest is the largest.

How it works

Most angel drawings stand or fall on the wings, so this list starts there: a single feather, a folded wing, a pair seen from behind. After the wings come angels in art and stone, Christmas angels and small winged symbols.

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How to draw angel wings

Borrow from a bird. A wing is an arm: shoulder, forearm, hand. Short feathers called coverts overlap along the top like roof tiles. Under them the secondaries grow from the forearm and the long primaries from the hand. Draw the bent arm line first, then three rows of feathers, shortest at the top.

Questions and answers

What are easy angel drawing ideas?

A simple wing from three rows of scallops, a halo and a pair of wings with nobody between them, or a paper chain of angels holding hands. The Easy level, under More filters, holds 25.

What is the difference between a cherub and a putto?

In art a putto is a chubby child, very often winged, and people often call it a cherub. In traditional Christian theology a cherub is something else: one of the most senior kinds of angel.

How do you draw a halo?

As a ring or a disc of light around the head. For a ring, float an ellipse just above the hair. For a disc, draw a full circle and let the head overlap its lower half.

What can I draw for a Christmas angel?

A school-play angel costume with a tinsel halo, a clothespin angel with lace wings or a gingerbread angel with one wing nibbled. The angel for the top of the tree is on the Christmas list.

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