Draw Klimt's Tree of Life

Project Idea: Drawing Paper

Gustav Klimt (1862-1918) was an Austrian painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Art Nouveau movement. His wonderfully abstract "Tree of Life" can be fun and relatively easy to draw when you break it down into steps.

1. Draw center tree trunk on a sheet of Strathmore® Drawing paper. At the top of the trunk, add one curvy branch to the right and left. Center two more curvy branches on either side. Add small curvy branches wherever space allows. Draw the ground line behind the tree.
2. Add small abstract triangle leaves and mushroom shapes on the top of tree branches. Then add abstract designs inside the tree branches and on the ground. Erase the lines where the branches are added on.
3. Trace all the lines with a permanent black marker. Color the tree and background as desired using oil pastels. Gold and rich colors were often featured in Klimt’s work.