How to Draw Moroccan Art

What You'll Need

• •Traditional paper or watercolor paper, a graphite pencil, ruler, compass, fine liner, and kneaded eraser for measured construction and delicate ornament.
• •Watercolor, gouache, colored pencils, or inks in terracotta, ochre, sand, cream, deep blue, turquoise, green, umber, and near-black.
• •A small square brush, pointed detail brush, and dry brush for tile edges, stucco texture, cedar grain, and soft shadow transitions.
• •Optional craft materials such as thin cardboard, wood, air-dry clay, or plaster for studying relief, carved panels, and tile-like surfaces in a small maquette.
• •A digital painting app with layers, guides, shape tools, clipping masks, symmetry assistance, and textured brushes; a stylus is helpful but not essential.
• •A geometric construction tool or vector app for generating repeatable stars, polygons, borders, and accurately tiled patterns before importing them into a painting program.

Step by Step

1. 1

   1. Choose a courtyard viewpoint and establish the frame

   Use a vertical or square format and place the viewer at eye level inside a courtyard, looking toward a central arched doorway or fountain. Draw a light horizon line and a central vertical axis, then divide the image into three depth zones: foreground floor, middle architectural wall, and upper openings or roofline. Keep the main arch near the center, but allow a side column, doorway, or clipped tile border to overlap the frame so the scene feels designed rather than diagrammed.

2. 2

   2. Block in the architecture with repeated proportions

   Construct the main arch from two vertical supports, a spring line, and a curved or pointed top; use a compass, ellipse guide, or repeated measured marks rather than guessing the curve. Add smaller horseshoe, pointed, or scalloped arches inside the courtyard, making each successive opening slightly lighter or less detailed to suggest distance. Repeat widths for columns, pilasters, and wall bands so the architecture has the deliberate cadence associated with Moroccan interiors.

3. 3

   3. Plan the zellige geometry before adding color

   For an eight-point star, draw a square, rotate or overlap a second square, and use the intersections to create the star and surrounding polygon shapes. Extend the construction into a border or tessellated field, checking that adjacent shapes meet cleanly without accidental gaps. You can also use a twelve-point star, interlocking polygons, or a simpler diamond grid, but select one dominant pattern and reserve smaller motifs for framing areas.

4. 4

   4. Separate tile, stucco, and cedar surfaces

   Assign the lower wall, fountain surround, or floor to glossy zellige tile; assign broad upper walls and arch faces to matte stucco; and place carved cedar in doors, shutters, beams, or screens. On paper, lightly outline each material boundary before painting, and in a digital file put each material on its own layer or group. Vary the edge quality: tile joints should be crisp, stucco edges slightly irregular, and cedar carvings softened by tiny bevels and directional grain.

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   5. Apply a warm material palette with controlled accents

   Begin with sand, cream, muted terracotta, and warm umber so the image feels grounded in plaster, earth, and wood. Add deep cobalt or blue-green to selected tile shapes, not every shape, then repeat those accents in a doorway, basin, or distant wall to unify the composition. Mix slightly different versions of the same color within a tile field; handmade tiles should vary subtly in value and temperature rather than looking like a perfectly uniform digital fill.

6. 6

   6. Build carved cedar and stucco relief

   For cedar, draw interlacing vines, polygonal knots, or restrained calligraphic-like curves inside a rectangular panel, then shade one consistent side of each groove with a dark umber line. For stucco, layer geometric relief bands around arches and soften their centers with pale highlights, leaving small gaps where the plaster appears worn or uneven. Keep relief shallower and less contrasted in the background so the foreground carving remains readable.

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   7. Design the courtyard floor and focal object

   Lead the floor tiles or paving lines toward the central arch using receding diagonals, while keeping the pattern simpler than the wall ornament. Add a fountain, low basin, potted plant, lantern, or empty pool as a quiet focal object near the center; its silhouette should be clear before any decorative detail is added. Use a few dark reflected shapes under the object and along the wall base to anchor it to the ground.

8. 8

   8. Paint filtered light and architectural shadow

   Choose one light direction, such as sunlight entering through a mashrabiya-like screen or high courtyard opening, and place the brightest area just beyond the main arch. Cast soft-edged bands and patterned shadows across the floor, then sharpen only the shadow edges closest to the opening or screen. Reserve your deepest darks for recesses, door gaps, carved grooves, and contact shadows; this contrast will make the warm plaster and blue tile appear luminous.

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   9. Refine the rhythm and finish with selective detail

   Step back or mirror the image to inspect balance, then simplify any region where every tile, carving, and shadow competes for attention. Strengthen the central arch, repeat two or three key motifs across the scene, and add small irregularities such as chipped glaze, uneven grout, wood grain, or plaster variation. Finish by restoring a few clean highlights on tile edges and metal or water, while leaving some construction-like simplicity in distant areas to preserve depth.

Going Digital

Work with separate groups for construction guides, architecture, tile, cedar, stucco, atmosphere, and light. Use a vector or shape layer to build one accurate star or polygon unit, duplicate and rotate it, then rasterize or paint over it with a textured brush so the result does not look mechanically perfect. Set a warm multiply layer for ambient recesses, a low-opacity cool or neutral layer for reflected shade, and a soft screen or add layer only for restrained sunlit tile and water. Keep guides visible while placing geometry, then hide them and introduce slight hue, value, and edge variation with a speckled brush.

Common Mistakes

FAQ