Surreal Idea Generator

Press the button for one surreal picture idea: an ordinary thing, an impossible change, a place and a scale.

Surreal Idea Generator: 30 surreal ideas

A sealed envelope cut in half, with a night sky inside, inside a glass display case in a museum. Scale: half the height of a daisy.

Padlock: keep a part. Arrows: change only that part.

Ordinary thingsealed envelope
Impossible changecut in half, with a night sky inside
Placeinside a glass display case in a museum
Scale or counthalf the height of a daisy

History (0)

Every surreal idea you make is kept here, newest first, up to the last 20. The list stays in this browser.

Surreal Idea of the day

A sealed envelope cut in half, with a night sky inside, inside a glass display case in a museum. Scale: half the height of a daisy.
A sagging armchair hollowed out, with a tiny furnished room inside, in a launderette at night. Scale: in a crowd, all turned the same way.
A glass salt shaker peeled back at one corner to show cogs, in a forest clearing. Scale: tall enough to wear a cloud.
A street lamp covered in frost on one side only, in a playground after dark. Scale: large enough to walk underneath.
A pair of scissors with a drawer pulled out, full of sea, in a library between two tall shelves. Scale: heavy enough to bend whatever it stands on.
A window frame with a small door in its side, standing open, in a playground after dark. Scale: the size of a sugar cube.
A window frame hollowed out, with a tiny furnished room inside, in a supermarket aisle. Scale: the size of a parked car.
A comb knitted from grey wool, on a stage with the curtain half drawn. Scale: doll's-house size, on an ordinary floor.
A wardrobe with a lit window in it, in an elevator with the doors just opening. Scale: stacked seven high and leaning.
A tin watering can with a lit window in it, on a windowsill at night. Scale: by the hundred, scattered like fallen leaves.
A whistling kettle made of feathers, on a zebra crossing. Scale: twice the height of a full-grown tree.
A traffic cone growing roots into the floor, on a zebra crossing. Scale: the size of a sugar cube.
A rowing boat made of glass and full of smoke, in a desert with one small cloud. Scale: filling the whole space, edge to edge.
A long wooden ladder sprouting a pair of small wings, in a bathroom tiled from floor to ceiling. Scale: in a queue of twenty, waiting patiently.
A whistling kettle knitted from grey wool, on a stage with the curtain half drawn. Scale: the size of a hill, with a path up it.
A sagging armchair falling upward, in an empty car park at noon. Scale: by the hundred, scattered like fallen leaves.
A mirror walking on thin bird legs, on a calm sea, far from land. Scale: as three, in three sizes.
A whistling kettle folded from one sheet of newspaper, in an elevator with the doors just opening. Scale: the size of a sugar cube.
A park bench made of cloud, in a bathroom tiled from floor to ceiling. Scale: so large that birds circle it.
A matchbox made of wax, half melted, inside a glass display case in a museum. Scale: small enough to float on a soap bubble.
A red letterbox split open, with a flock of birds leaving it, on a railway platform with no train. Scale: tiny, with a wide margin of empty space round it.
A crusty loaf of bread shedding its skin like a snake, on a made bed. Scale: half the height of a daisy.
A yellow pencil tied down with ropes, straining to leave, at the bottom of a drained swimming pool. Scale: tiny enough to be mistaken for a crumb.
A red letterbox floating a hand's width above the ground, on a stage with the curtain half drawn. Scale: in a queue of twenty, waiting patiently.
An egg seen from the front and the side at once, in a desert with one small cloud. Scale: no bigger than a grain of rice.
A shoe falling upward, at the end of a long jetty. Scale: tiny enough to be mistaken for a crumb.
A door split open, with a flock of birds leaving it, in a bathroom tiled from floor to ceiling. Scale: small enough to float on a soap bubble.
A dinner fork seen from the front and the side at once, in an empty car park at noon. Scale: as a pair, facing each other.
A drinking glass on a lead, waiting to be taken for a walk, at the bottom of a drained swimming pool. Scale: doubled, the second one upside down above it.
A yellow pencil asleep under a blanket, in an empty car park at noon. Scale: heavy enough to bend whatever it stands on.

Next step See a list of weird things to draw Get a plain prompt instead

Ordinary thing: all 48 ordinary things

Kitchen and table 12

china teacup Keep the handle and the saucer. Those two say cup, whatever else happens to it.
crusty loaf of bread A domed top with a split along it, and a flat cut end showing the crumb.
dinner fork Four tines and a waist. Draw it from slightly above so the tines separate.

Show all 48 ordinary things (45 more)

Kitchen and table, continued

dinner plate Two ellipses, one inside the other. The rim catches a line of light.
drinking glass Draw the rim as an ellipse and the base as a rounder one. Leave the sides as highlights.
egg An egg is not an oval: one end is blunter. Set it in an egg cup to fix the scale.
frying pan A flat ellipse and one long straight handle. Tilt it so the inside shows.
glass salt shaker A small tower with a domed top and five dots. A few spilt grains help.
milk jug The lip is what matters. Draw it pinched, with a drip about to fall.
round brown teapot Spout one side, handle the other, knob on top: almost a face already.
whistling kettle Spout, lid knob and handle are the three signs. Keep all three in view.
wooden spoon A long handle and a shallow oval bowl. Give the wood two or three grain lines.

Furniture and house 12

bookshelf Uprights and shelves first, then books as stripes that lean on each other.
claw-footed bathtub A long rounded box on four small feet, with two taps at one end.
coat hanger A triangle with a hook. Simple enough to stay readable at any size.
door Panels, a handle and hinges on the other side. Leave it a hand's width open.
feather pillow A soft rectangle with four pinched corners and a dent in the middle.
kitchen chair Four legs, a seat and a slatted back. Check that all four feet touch one floor.
long wooden ladder Two rails and even rungs. Lean it, and the rungs close up toward the top.
mirror A frame and a slanted highlight. What it reflects is yours to choose.
sagging armchair Fat arms, a dipped seat and stubby feet. Draw it as stacked cushions.
staircase Equal steps make a zigzag edge. Count them so the top lands where it should.
wardrobe A tall box with two doors and a key in one of them.
window frame A rectangle with a cross in it, and a sill that sticks out at the bottom.

Street and outdoors 12

bicycle Two circles and a diamond frame. Get the diamond right and the rest follows.
black umbrella Eight ribs and a curved handle. Open, it is a dome with a scalloped edge.
garden gate Upright pickets, one diagonal brace and a latch.
garden shed A box with a pitched roof, a plank door and one small window.
park bench Slats along the seat and back, and two iron ends that curl.
red balloon A teardrop upside down with a knot and a string. Give it one window of light.
red letterbox A box or a pillar with one dark slot. The slot is its whole expression.
rowing boat Pointed at one end and square at the other, with two oars laid across the seats.
street lamp A tall post, a curved neck and a lantern head.
tin watering can A drum, a long spout with a rose on the end, and a hoop handle.
traffic cone An orange cone with one white band on a square foot.
wheelbarrow One wheel, two handles and a tray that tapers toward the front.

Pocket and desk 12

book Three visible faces: cover, spine and the striped edge of the pages.
coat button A disc with four holes and a raised rim. Thread through two of them.
comb A spine and a row of teeth. Break one tooth so it looks used.
door key A ring, a stem and teeth. An old-fashioned key reads best from far away.
matchbox A tray sliding out of a sleeve, with one match lying across it.
pair of scissors Two loops and two blades crossing at a screw. Open them slightly.
pair of spectacles Two rims, a bridge and two arms. Fold one arm in.
paper clip One wire bent in three loops. Draw it as a single line that never crosses itself.
sealed envelope A rectangle with a V flap. Add a stamp so it has a right way up.
shoe Sole, heel, tongue and laces. Leave one lace trailing.
woollen glove Four fingers and a thumb set lower down. Let the cuff flare a little.
yellow pencil A hexagon in section, with a sharpened cone and a metal band for the eraser.

How this list was compiled: Original list written for Draw This Next, October 2026. Made up for this page: every thing, change, place and scale is our own, and none describes a known painting, photograph or film. The notes are our own drawing advice. That Surrealism is a movement in art and culture that grew up in Europe after World War I, often depicting illogical or dreamlike scenes, was read in the English Wikipedia article Surrealism on 2026-10-08 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrealism, CC BY-SA 4.0). Licence: own work

Impossible change: all 48 impossible changes

Made of the wrong stuff 12

built of red brick The courses of brick bend round the form. Draw four rows with care and hint the rest.
carved from a single block of ice Hard highlights, blue shadows inside, and a small puddle starting below.
folded from one sheet of newspaper Sharp creases, and lines of grey text running a different way on each face.

Show all 48 impossible changes (45 more)

Made of the wrong stuff, continued

grown from living wood, with leaves Bark, a knot, and two twigs in leaf where a handle or a corner would be.
knitted from grey wool Show the stitches along one edge only, and a loose end trailing off.
made of cloud A soft edge all round and a flat shaded base. Only the outline says what it was.
made of feathers Lay the feathers like roof tiles, all one way, and ruffle a few at the edge.
made of glass and full of smoke Glass is drawn by its highlights. The smoke gives it an inside.
made of water that holds its shape Give it ripples and a highlight, and let one drip fall from the lowest edge.
made of wax, half melted Soft drips down one side and a hard edge on the other. Keep the top whole.
stitched from patches of cloth Seams in a darker thread, and a different pattern on every patch.
turned to stone except for one part Grey and pitted everywhere, with one part still in full colour.

Breaking a law of nature 12

burning without being burnt Flames rise from it, and the surface under them stays clean and bright.
casting no shadow at all Give everything else a strong shadow so that the missing one shows.
casting the shadow of something else Draw the shadow first and decide what it is. Then add the innocent object.
covered in frost on one side only White crystals on one face and clean colour on the other, with a sharp line between.
fading out toward one end Solid at one side, outline in the middle, blank paper at the other.
falling upward Tilt it as if it were dropping, and point the speed lines at the ground.
floating a hand's width above the ground The cast shadow sits apart from the object. That gap is the whole trick.
frozen in the middle of shattering The pieces hang apart with even gaps, each one still in its right place.
half sunk into a solid floor Cut it off with a clean straight line. No ripples and no cracks.
lit from inside like a lantern Its surface glows, and the ground round it catches the light.
reflected in a mirror that is not there Draw it twice, the second one reversed and paler, with no frame between.
seen from the front and the side at once Join two views along a shared edge, the way a child draws a face.

Something inside it 12

cut in half, with a night sky inside A clean cut edge, then deep blue and a few stars where the inside should be.
hollowed out, with a tiny furnished room inside Cut away the front like a doll's house: a chair, a rug, a lamp.
peeled back at one corner to show cogs The peeled skin curls like paper. Under it, three cogs and a spring.
split open, with a flock of birds leaving it Birds are small ticks that grow as they near the viewer.
unzipped down the middle A zip with a pull tag, open a third of the way, and another colour underneath.
with a drawer pulled out, full of sea A level blue surface in the drawer, with one very small wave.
with a keyhole, and light coming through it A keyhole shape and a narrow beam fanning out over the floor.
with a ladder going up out of the top Two rails and rungs rising out of frame. Do not show where it ends.
with a lit window in it One yellow square with a cross frame. Someone is at home.
with a small door in its side, standing open The door needs a frame, a handle and a dark inside: three marks.
with a staircase leading down into it The steps shrink as they go down. Lose the last ones in shadow.
with a tree growing through it The trunk goes in below and the leaves come out above. Nothing is broken.

Behaving as if alive 12

asleep under a blanket Tuck the blanket up to where a chin would be and let one corner trail.
growing roots into the floor Roots spread from the base and lift the boards or crack the ground.
leaving wet footprints behind it A trail of small prints leads up to where it stands. They are not its shape.
on a lead, waiting to be taken for a walk The lead runs out of frame. Whoever holds it is not shown.
shedding its skin like a snake The old skin lies behind it, paper-thin, the same shape and paler.
sprouting a pair of small wings The wings sit high and are too small for the job. That is the charm.
tied down with ropes, straining to leave Four ropes and four pegs, all taut. It leans the way it wants to go.
turning its back on the viewer Decide which side is the back and give it a slight hunch.
walking on thin bird legs The legs join underneath, knees bending backwards, caught mid-stride.
with a mouth, mid-yawn A dark lopsided oval. Stretch the whole object a little upward.
with one open eye, looking straight at you Set the eye off centre. Give it a lid and one highlight, and nothing else human.
wrapped in a scarf against the cold One end of the scarf lifts in a wind that nothing else feels.

Place: all 36 places

Indoors 12

at the bottom of a stairwell, seen from above A square spiral of banister shrinking downward, with the object at its centre.
in a bathroom tiled from floor to ceiling The grid of tiles gives you the perspective for free. Rule it lightly first.
in a flooded living room Water to the height of the skirting board, flat as glass, mirroring the chair legs.

Show all 36 places (33 more)

Indoors, continued

in a kitchen where everything else is normal Draw the tea towel and the tap plainly. Normal makes strange louder.
in a long corridor of identical doors One-point perspective. Every door shrinks toward a single dot.
in a white room with no door Three planes and nothing else: floor, back wall, side wall. Shade each differently.
in an attic full of dust sheets Draped pale shapes all round, and one shaft of light from a roof window.
inside a glass display case in a museum A plinth, four glass edges drawn as highlights, and a small blank label.
on a dinner table laid for one Knife, fork, napkin and glass frame whatever sits where the plate should be.
on a made bed Tight sheets, a turned-down corner, and a dent where it rests.
on a stage with the curtain half drawn A heavy curtain down one side and a single pool of light on the boards.
on a windowsill at night A dark pane behind and a pale sill in front. The light comes from the room.

Outdoors 12

at the end of a long jetty The planks run away to a point. The object sits where the lines meet.
in a desert with one small cloud A flat line, a pale floor and one cloud. Leave most of the page empty.
in a field of tall wheat The wheat hides the base, so the object rises out of a soft gold edge.
in a forest clearing Dark trunks all round and one pool of light in the middle for the object.
in a garden gone wild Long grass, a leaning fence, seed heads. The object is the only tidy thing.
in the middle of a snowfield White paper does most of it. Add one blue shadow and a faint horizon.
on a beach at low tide Wet sand mirrors it loosely. A line of footprints leads up to it and stops.
on a calm sea, far from land A level horizon, and a reflection that is slightly broken.
on a cliff edge above the clouds Rock in the near corner, a floor of cloud beyond, and nothing else.
on a frozen lake Flat pale blue, a few long cracks, and a faint reflection straight below.
on a hilltop under a huge moon The moon is larger than is fair. Silhouette the object against it.
on a rock in the middle of a river The water streams past in long strokes. The rock and the object stay sharp.

Empty public places 12

at the bottom of a drained swimming pool Tiled walls, a ladder, a painted lane line and a damp patch by the drain.
in a launderette at night A row of round glass doors. One of them is turning.
in a library between two tall shelves Books as stripes of colour. Leave a gap on one shelf.
in a playground after dark A swing, a slide, and long shadows from a single light out of frame.
in a school hall after everyone has gone Stacked chairs and a polished floor with window light lying on it.
in a supermarket aisle Shelves run to a point on both sides. Blur the labels to blocks of colour.
in a town square with all the shutters closed Long shadows of arches over paving. Keep the buildings to flat shapes.
in an elevator with the doors just opening Two doors parting, a strip of bright interior, and the object inside.
in an empty car park at noon Painted bays, short shadows and one lamp post. The emptiness is the mood.
on a railway platform with no train A yellow line, a bench and a hanging sign with nothing on it.
on a roundabout with no cars A ring of kerb, and arrows pointing round it for nobody.
on a zebra crossing Bold stripes run under it. The traffic has stopped somewhere out of frame.

Scale or count: all 36 scales and counts

Far too big 12

as tall as a house Put a real door or a person at its foot. Scale needs a witness.
big enough to block the horizon Let it run off the top of the page. Cropping reads as size.
filling the whole space, edge to edge Press it against the edges of the picture so that it looks squeezed in.

Show all 36 scales and counts (33 more)

Far too big, continued

heavy enough to bend whatever it stands on Bow the surface under it and tilt nearby things toward the dip.
large enough to walk underneath Show a strip of daylight below it and someone small passing through.
the size of a hill, with a path up it A thin zigzag path, and a figure a third of the way up.
the size of a parked car A kerb, a tyre or a road marking beside it sets the size.
so big that only part of it fits in view Choose the most telling part: a handle, a corner, a rim. Draw only that.
so large that birds circle it Birds as tiny ticks near its top third do the measuring.
tall enough to wear a cloud A wisp of cloud across its upper part. Fade the top a little.
taller than a lamp post Stand one lamp post beside it, reaching no higher than its middle.
twice the height of a full-grown tree A tree is a ruler everyone knows. Draw one, small, beside it.

Far too small 12

doll's-house size, on an ordinary floor Floorboards become wide planks. A dropped pin is a fallen pole.
half the height of a daisy Daisy petals overhead like a parasol. Get down to ground level.
no bigger than a grain of rice A magnifying glass over it lets you draw it large and still say small.
the size of a sugar cube Sit it beside a teaspoon for scale.
small enough to balance on a fingertip One finger held level, and the object lit from above.
small enough to be carried off by an ant Draw the ant in detail. The object rides on its back.
small enough to float on a soap bubble The bubble has two curved highlights. The object dents it slightly.
small enough to hide under a leaf Lift the leaf with one fingertip. Show the shade it has been living in.
small enough to sit on a thumbnail Draw the thumb. The object is a careful speck on it.
so small it needs a label and an arrow A neat hand-lettered label and a long thin arrow, like a museum plate.
tiny enough to be mistaken for a crumb Scatter real crumbs round it. Only one of them has a shape.
tiny, with a wide margin of empty space round it Leave most of the page bare. Resist filling it.

Too many 12

as a pair, facing each other Mirror them with a small gap between. The gap becomes a third shape.
as three, in three sizes Put the largest at the back. It breaks the rule of distance on purpose.
by the hundred, scattered like fallen leaves Big ones near, specks far, all tilted differently. Leave one clear patch.
doubled, the second one upside down above it Join the two at a horizon line so the picture reads either way up.
heaped in a pile taller than a door The heap is a rough triangle: outlines at the edges, tone in the middle.
in a crowd, all turned the same way Overlap them like heads at a concert. Detail only the front few.
in a queue of twenty, waiting patiently A queue has gaps and leaners. Let one near the back look round.
in a ring of nine around an empty middle Space them evenly and light the bare centre.
in a row of twelve, one of them different Decide what differs: colour, tilt or one missing part. Put it seventh.
multiplied like a pattern on wallpaper Set a strict grid, then let one step out of line.
repeated until they fade out of sight Draw the first three well and let the rest shrink to marks.
stacked seven high and leaning The stack curves. Each one sits a little off the one below it.

How it works

This surreal idea generator takes one ordinary thing and breaks one rule about it: its material, its behaviour or its inside. Then it names a place and a scale. All four lists are printed below with drawing notes.

Read the full guide

One impossible thing, drawn straight

Surrealism grew up in Europe after the First World War, and its pictures are known for illogical, dreamlike scenes. One way in: draw everything as plainly as a catalogue photograph and change one fact. A china teacup made of cloud needs a real saucer under it.

When the scale fights the place

A wardrobe as tall as a house, in an elevator with the doors just opening: do not fix it. Crop until only a corner fits, or draw the elevator enormous. When two parts disagree, the disagreement is the picture.

Light it like a still life: one lamp, one cast shadow. Ordinary light makes the impossible part look true.
Collage works as well as paint here: cut the thing from a magazine and paste it into the place.

Questions and answers

What makes an idea surreal?

Something familiar that breaks one rule of the real world while everything round it stays normal: the wrong material, the wrong size, the wrong place, or an inside that should not be there. Each result here changes one thing and leaves the rest ordinary.

Does it work as a surrealism ideas generator for art class?

Yes. The things are everyday objects, and many are small enough to set on a desk and draw from life: a kettle, a fork, a shoe. No entry is gory or violent. Draw the real object first, then add the change.

Does it generate a surreal image?

No. It gives the idea in words and leaves the picture to you, in pencil, paint, collage or a photo edit.