How to Draw Brains

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The brain is one of the easiest parts of the body to draw. You can simply draw with lots of zigzag lines and keep the rounded shape. If you want a little more challenge, draw more parts of the brain, such as the brain stem and cerebellum. Once you’ve drawn a cartoon or realistic brain, you can color or annotate parts of the brain.

Table of Contents

Simple cartoon brain sketch

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Draw a large pea to outline the shape of the brain. Use a pencil to draw a kidney bean shape on the paper. The size of the brain is up to you. To draw a kidney bean, draw a slightly concave circle at the bottom. ^{[1] X Research Source}

You can also draw an oval if you like, but make sure the middle is much wider than the ends.

Tip: Use a pencil when sketching, as it easily erases mistakes.

Draw a curved half circle in the center of the brain. To highlight part of the cartoon brain, place the tip of the pencil at the bottom border of the shape you just drew, near the indent in the center. Draw a half circle from the bottom to the center of the bean shape as a decorative twist. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Remember that the brain doesn’t have to be realistic, because you’re drawing in a simple cartoon style.

Draw 2-3 more connecting wavy lines inside the brain. The brain is commonly known for its wrinkles, and some wrinkles run throughout the brain. Draw a few curved lines from the outer outline that connect to the half circle you just drew, or to the opposite edge of the brain. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Draw multiple zigzag lines that don’t connect to each other. These lines look like wrinkles when you draw them all over the brain. There is no need to join all these lines together, so you should draw wavy lines of different lengths and curvatures. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

Lines may or may not be connected to the outer contour of the brain.

Fill the outer outline to make it thicker to give the brain texture. Draw over the contours for bolder and curvier. You can also highlight some wavy lines to make them stand out more. ^{[5] X Research Sources}

You can skip this step if you want the drawing to look more like 2D.

Drawing realistic brains

Draw a slightly bulging horizontal oval on the curve below. Sketch an oval the size of the brain you want to draw. Draw a little circle in the middle of the upper curve to form the rounded part of the brain. When drawing the curve below, you draw a slight bulge near the midpoint. This bulge accounts for about one-third of the brain’s length. ^{[6] X Research Source}

Draw lightly so you can erase any mistakes or re-fill them with ink.

Tip: If it’s easier, you can draw a horizontal oval and a circle about 1/3 the size of the curve below. Draw this circle over the oval’s lower curve, followed by a line connecting the circle to the oval’s outer outline. Then delete the rest of the circle.

Outline a narrow curved line above the upper border of the brain. This curve will give your drawing more depth. Starting at one end of the oval, draw a curved line over the top border. This curve will be about 1/3 away from the original contour at its widest point. ^{[7] X Research Sources}

If you don’t want to give your brain depth, you can skip this step.

Draw a curved line like a C on the bulge of the bottom border. After you have drawn the basic shape of the brain, you will begin to draw strokes that separate the different parts of the brain. Find the bulge you just drew on the bottom border and draw the base of the C shape to match the bulge. Drag the top of the C to the center of the brain. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

The bulge will be the temporal lobe of the brain.

Fill the curve from the outer border to the midpoint of the line just drawn. To draw another part of the brain, draw a slight curve from the upper border of the brain. Draw slightly curved so that it connects to the midpoint of the line just drawn. ^{[9] X Research Source}

The part that you just separated will be the frontal lobe.

Draw 2-3 curves throughout each part of the brain. Draw multiple fuzzy curves for each part. Try to simulate the shape of each part one by one. For example, the frontal lobe curves should curve upwards towards the line just drawn, while the curves near the back and below the brain should circle downwards. ^{[10] X Research Source}

You’ll be using faint strokes to make the lines easier to guide.

Draw semicircles along the outlined lines to look like wrinkles. Instead of leaving the smooth lines as they are, you’ll draw semicircular curves along these lines. Curves can take many different directions to create roughness. Draw like this with each drawing line so that the brain has a floating texture. ^{[11] X Research Source}

Remember to repaint along the line you drew above the brain. Add small curves along this line to make the brain appear bumpy.

Draw a horizontal tube and semi-circle at the center of the base of the brain. To draw the brain stem (medullary medulla), you will draw a narrow tube that descends from the midpoint of the base of the brain. How long you draw is up to you. Next, draw a half circle to the right of the tube. This semicircle will extend almost to the posterior end of the brain. ^{[12] X Research Source}

To draw more detail to the cerebellum, you can draw more thin horizontal lines. Draw these lines slightly wavy for a more realistic look.

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Use crayons, markers, and crayons to color the drawing. You can use one color and polish the inside of the brain to create depth, or use multiple colors to highlight each part of the brain.

For example, you can use 5 or 6 colors if you want to note parts of the brain. Different colors can help these sections stand out.

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Note the parts of the brain if you want to use to illustrate the structure of the brain. If you are learning about parts of the brain then drawing brains and taking notes would be a great practice. Compare with textbook for notes:

Forehead lobe
Top lobe
The temporal lobe
Occipital lobe
spinal canal
Cerebellum

Advice

If you have trouble drawing the brain, start with a basic oval and draw zigzag lines or wrinkles all over the brain. You can draw more details once you are more confident,

Things you need

Pencil or pens
Eraser
Paper
Colored pens or markers, optional

Steps

Simple cartoon brain sketch

Drawing realistic brains

Advice

Things you need

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