How to Draw Grape Vines with Calligraphy

Let’s draw some grape vines with grapes for making wine. Then, we’ll add their names in different calligraphy script styles. 

The other day, I was out pruning our grape vines (or possibly torturing them, as I’m still learning and only have one chance a year). We have two varieties, a white grape and Concord grapes (the best kind for juice or a table wine that’s on the sweet side). 

As I watch the grapes through the growing season, I think about how fun it would be to make wine, or at the very least, design wine labels for a vineyard. So this tutorial is born of me dreaming for that opportunity and practicing grape drawing ideas. You can benefit from my play. Maybe it will inspire you to make a label or some wine too. 

We’ll paint a few of my favorite grapes for juice and wine. I tend toward white wines, so we’ll draw a couple of them. Amazingly, Pinot Grigio is a white wine but comes from red-yellow-brown colored grapes. Riesling grapes are white-yellow, and Concord grapes are blue-purple. 

I mixed paint for this tutorial to try to get the colors accurate, but most of the original colors came from the sketcher’s paint box (with the addition of magenta from Daniel Smith to get the reddish grapes). 

If you’re new to mixing and matching paint colors, use a purple or blue for concord, a yellow for Riesling, and a red for Pinot Grigio. It will still show the contrasting colors and stand out against the green leaves.

Are you ready to start?

Gather your supplies

• Basic calligraphy supplies with Ziller ink
• Basic Watercolor supplies 
• Winsor & Newton Cotman Sketcher’s Pocket Box 
• Daniel Smith Magenta
• How to Draw Grape Vines Worksheet Set

Keep reading for extra tips and tricks or jump to the video.

Draw Grape Vines

Think about grape vines before you draw. What do vines look like? How do they act as they grow? What shape are the leaves? How do the grape clusters look when they hang off the vine? 

Go look at some real grape vines if you can. Then, sketch some ideas. 

Here are some steps to get your started drawing grape vines.

When you have the sketch the way you want it, draw over it with a calligraphy pen. Use a mixture of thick and thin strokes to draw, putting thicker strokes where you want a little bit of shadow or variation and thin or broken strokes where the light will highlight an area. 

Write Calligraphy Names in Different Styles

Now, let’s add the grape names in different calligraphy styles. Think about juice and white wine with cheese and a chunk of fresh, crusty bread as you dream up your styles. Do you want your style casual or elegant, playful or serious?

Write each name next to a cluster of grapes.

Watercolor Background

Now, it’s time to add some color to the grape vines. Let’s start with a loose watercolor background. Leaves first.

Use your brush to move the paint and water around the drawing. Keep it fairly light because it’s a background and feel out the edges as you paint. In the video, you can see that I change my mind a time or two. I add a splash; then paint over it. As long as the paint is still wet, it will blend in seamlessly. 

Now is also the time to tap in different shades of green so they blend as they dry. Notice that I tapped in a lighter green as I continued to paint. 

I want to paint the grapes as close to their actual color as I can, so I’ll give them each a watercolor background that is a shade lighter in that same color. 

Let it dry completely.

Final Watercolor Layer

For the final watercolor layer, we’ll add some definition to the drawing. Starting with the leaves, use a darker (less water) green to paint. Don’t worry about staying inside the lines (Unless you like that style better, of course. Paint to your preference.). 

Next, paint individual grapes: blue for the Concord, reddish for the Pinot Grigio, and yellow for the Riesling. 

The grapes can offset the drawing to add to the clustered look. 

As you work, leave small white areas on some of the grapes for highlights, and paint some grapes darker than others to add dimension. 

Let it dry completely. 

And you’re finished! Now, how about that glass of wine?

Watch How to Draw Grape Vines with Calligraphy

Enjoy the process!