How to Draw a Chinese Dragon

In the third installment in our how to draw a dragon series, we will draw a Chinese dragon. Chinese dragons are quite different from the western style dragon. They are snake-shaped creatures with legs.
Drawing a Chinese dragon is quite easy. If you follow the step-by-step drawing guide carefully, you will have your dragon drawn in just minutes.
Draw with a light hand. You will be erasing some of the early shapes before the drawing is complete.
In the guide below, each step is highlighted in a light blue color.
You don’t need any special pens or tools. A regular pencil, eraser, and paper are all you need. If you want, you can also color the drawing with colored pencils or pens.
If you liked this tutorial, see also the following drawing guides: Baby Dragon, Cartoon Dragon, and Dragon Head.

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Step-by-Step Instructions for Drawing a Chinese Dragon

Draw a small circle at the bottom right corner of the paper. The dragon’s body is quite long, so leave enough room for it.

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Add a smaller circle next to the first one. This will be the dragon’s snout.

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Draw a long curved line behind the head.

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Draw another curved line parallel to the previous one. It tapers in the end to meet the other line.

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Draw yet another curved line parallel to the previous ones. You can start to see the outline of the dragon’s body.

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Erase the middle line from the body.

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Add a couple more curved lines to the body to make it more three dimensional. See the video below, if you’re uncertain how to draw the lines.

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Enhance the shape of the snout with additional curved lines.

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Sketch jagged lines for the hair at the back of the head and around the snout.

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Erase the helper shapes from the head and snout.

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Add a fluffy tail at the end of the body.

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Draw the legs and paws as pictured.

Add some fur to the legs and emphasize the claws with short curving lines.

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Draw two circles for the eyes.

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Draw curving eyelids, pupils, and hairy eyebrows.

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Draw the mouth and add details at the nose and between the eyes.

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Add a jagged line for the teeth and curving lines at the snout.

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Draw the antlers, long whiskers, and mane.

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Add curved lines to the sides of the body to enhance the perspective.

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Trace your dragon with a darker pencil and color it.

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