How to Draw Rorschach

Finished Rorschach drawing with detailed clothing and dark comic-style shadows

In this tutorial, we will draw Rorschach from Watchmen.

Rorschach is a rather stereotypical and formulaic character. We can see many harsh and uncompromising characters in other stories, such as Max Payne and the Punisher.

But the idea and concept behind Watchmen are truly remarkable. That is why Rorschach became one of the most famous and recognizable comic book characters.

So, we begin this tutorial in which we will show you how to draw Rorschach step by step.

How to draw Rorschach step by step

Step 1: Sketch the basic figure

First, draw a stick figure. As you can see, this is an ordinary figure of a slim man of short stature. The construction is very simple because Rorschach stands straight with his arms extended along his torso.

Sketching Rorschach’s standing pose with a simple stick figure

Step 2: Build Rorschach’s body

Outline Rorschach’s silhouette, representing the parts of his body with simple shapes such as ovals, cylinders, and circles. There are several details that will make the figure look more natural:

The shoulders should be wider than the waist;
The neck should be clearly visible;
The thighs, lower legs, shoulders, and forearms should be narrow and elongated.

Building Rorschach’s body with simple rounded and cylindrical construction shapes

Step 3: Draw Rorschach’s clothing

Rorschach has a very recognizable clothing style. Draw a hat, a sketch a coat, and slim pants to preserve this distinctive appearance. The figure now begins to resemble our Slenderman drawing tutorial, doesn’t it?

Drawing Rorschach’s hat, trench coat, and slim pants

Step 4: Refine the hat of the antihero

Erase all unnecessary lines located inside the contours of Rorschach’s hat. This is a very simple step that helps clean up the drawing.

Cleaning the construction lines inside Rorschach’s hat

Step 5: Detail the upper coat

Add details to the upper part of Rorschach’s body. Draw the collar rim, buttons, and small pleats located above the belt.

Adding Rorschach’s collar, buttons, and upper coat details

Step 6: Finish Rorschach’s coat

Now draw the lower part of Rorschach’s coat below the belt. After that, add the belt itself.

Drawing the lower coat and belt on Rorschach

Step 7: Refine the character’s clothing

We have practically finished the detailing. All that remains is to refine the arms and legs. Outline Rorschach’s coat and pants, then add the folds in the fabric.

Refining Rorschach’s coat, pants, and fabric folds

Step 8: Add the shadows to Rorschach

Finish the Rorschach drawing by adding shadows. As you can see, the shadows are drawn in a classic comic book style using solid black areas with strong contrast.

Completed Rorschach drawing with bold comic-style shading and clean outlines

In this lesson, we showed you how to draw one of the most charismatic comic book characters. If you want to practice drawing other cool anti-heroes and superheroes, try sketching the Punisher or drawing Wolverine from the Marvel Universe.