How long does a drawing take? Spoiler: it doesn’t have to take long!

One of the most common questions I get when I post a drawing on Instagram is, “How long did that take you?”

It’s an interesting question—often, people assume that an intricate drawing must mean hours of work. But that’s not the case! Some drawings take me an hour, sure, but others? Just 15 minutes. To give you a better sense, I went through my archive and added time estimates to a few pieces. This way, you can see that the time commitment really varies.

This was on a moving ferry on lake Como, in Italy, and took about 15 minutes. The view is a “frankensteined view”, meaning I combined things that I saw gliding by as the boat was making its way to our destination. I used crayons and colored pencils on a grey toned background.

Spending an afternoon off in Lisbon, I had all the time in the world. This probably took about 45 minutes to an hour. I used a brushpen for the linework. The brushpen doesn’t allow for details so that speeds things up a little. Then I took time to choose bright watercolors, and layering them wet on dry.

I wasn’t sitting very comfortably and my butt was numb after finishing this! 30-40 minutes. Brushpen first, then watercolors.

This took as long as dinner out on your own takes in Paris. An hour, maybe an hour and a half, including pausing to eat!
I created the panels first, then filled them, using a black colored pencil only. Limiting your tools can speed things up.

20 minutes, sitting on the back rest of the sofa for a bird’s eye view. Again, the brushpen allowed me to keep moving. Do you see that I only colored part of the drawing? That makes things faster too.

To capture the different views on the train, I used just a few minutes for each of these vignettes. First I quickly put down watercolors, and then I used a water-soluble colored pencil (black), to draw quick lines.

This one took 10 minutes. I made a video of the process, so you can watch it in real time. In case you missed that Draw Tip Tuesday video, you can watch it here.

You got this!

I want to share this because I see so many people holding themselves back from drawing because they think they need a ton of time, a huge workspace, or all their favorite materials spread out neatly, before they can get started. But guess what? That idea create a high threshold to even start.

Often, the answer is simply setting a timer and diving in, even if it’s just for 15 or 20 minutes.

In my workshops, I set a timer for assignments, and it’s always exciting to see people surprised by how much they can achieve in a short burst. It’s not unusual for someone to share afterward, “Wow, I didn’t think I could get that much done!”
That’s why, if you’re reading this and feeling a bit stuck, here’s your assignment: grab your sketchbook, set a timer for 20 minutes, pick up any pen or pencil, and go! Draw whatever is right in front of you—no overthinking, just go with the flow.

Enjoy the process (and embrace the wonkiness!). The fun of drawing is in the doing, not how long it takes.

And if you’re curious about getting some timed practice with me and a whole bunch of artists just like you then, check out my monthly mini-workshops on Zoom here.