How to Draw a Colorful Umbrella-Easy Spring Art Project for Kids

I love helping kids draw on a rainy afternoon! Why not spark their creativity with a rainy day art project? Even better, start by reading a good picture book together, then get out your markers and colored pencils and watch your kids' imaginations blossom!

A couple of books pair beautifully with this project: Jonas Hanway's Scurrilous, Scandalous, Shockingly Sensational Umbrella by Josh Crute, or Rain Before Rainbows by Smriti Prasadam-Halls -- a must-read about hope and perseverance (no umbrella in this one, but there IS a rainbow!). (Amazon Associate links)

In this project, you'll spend a fun rainy afternoon drawing and coloring a person holding an umbrella in the rain, with a rainbow in the distance. I'll show you how to draw an umbrella, a person, and how to use color to create the illusion of space and distance.

Supplies: markers, colored pencils, and drawing paper.

Prefer step-by-step instructions? Follow along below!

Step 1: Draw a short line and an upside-down U in the top third of your paper. Connect the bottom of the U with a curved rainbow line.

Step 2: Add a few more curved lines coming down from the short line. Connect the bottom of each section with curved rainbow lines.

Step 3: Draw two small U's at the bottom of the central umbrella section for a person's arms.

Step 4: Draw a rectangle in between the arms for the body.

Step 5: Draw two straight vertical lines for legs with an upside-down V in between, then add boots.

Step 6: Color in your umbrella and person with markers.

Step 7: Draw a horizon line, skipping over the umbrella, and add small mountains, hills, houses, trees, or whatever you'd like along the horizon. Keep these small!

Step 8: Draw a rainbow with colored pencils. Color lightly and overlap each color. Rainbow order: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet.

Step 9: Color the rest of your background. The top of the paper should be much lighter, and the bottom should be brighter and darker. Anything near the person's boots should be the brightest and darkest, because it's closest to the viewer. This is how you create the illusion of space and distance!

April showers bring May flowers -- and great art! I hope your family has fun with this one.

>>Want more art projects like this? Join our free 5-Day Creation Art Challenge! Get it Here!