Brush exercises for beginners: 10 minutes a day to improve your sumi-e strokes

In sumi-e, you don’t “fix” a stroke: you learn to do it with intention. That’s why, before painting bamboo, plum trees or landscapes, it’s a good idea to practise the essentials: control, pressure, ink load and fluidity. In this routine, you’ll find brush exercises for beginners designed to be practised for just 10 minutes a day to steadily improve your strokes. If you need a quick overview of materials, start with this guide to essential tools for Japanese ink painting.

Why practise basic brush exercises in sumi-e

In Japanese ink painting, technique is linked to attention. Improvement does not come from drawing more ‘beautifully’, but from conscious repetition. These exercises help to build four key skills:

• controlled pressure (stable thickness and intentional changes)

• stability (wrist and arm working together)

• water and ink load (natural gradients without ‘smudges’)

• rhythm (clean brush strokes)

If you want to progress with corrections and avoid bad habits from the start, this type of practice works very well in an online sumi-e course for beginners.

How to organise your daily 10-minute practice

Simple structure (without complicating things)

• 2 minutes: preparation (ink, water and posture)

• 6 minutes: technical exercises (those below)

• 2 minutes: conscious repetition (choose 1 exercise and repeat it better)

Key tip

It is better to practise for 10 minutes every day for 30 days than for two hours on a single day. In sumi-e, consistency is more important than intensity.

Quick preparation before you start

Posture and grip

Hold the brush vertically, with your hand relaxed. Avoid a “pencil grip”. If you want to understand why this changes the stroke, review how to use ink and brush in Japanese painting.

Ink and water

Do not always strive for ‘perfect black’. Practise with different shades: deep black, medium grey and light grey. This will give you more control over gradients and atmospheres.

Brush exercise routine (6 minutes)

Exercise 1: vertical lines with consistent thickness

Objective: stability and pressure control

1. Vertical brush.

2. Draw 8 slow, even lines from top to bottom.

3. Aim for the same thickness from start to finish.

Variation: ‘thin-thick-thin’ stroke (press in the middle and release at the end). This is the basis for stems, branches and structure.

Exercise 2: Gradient in a single stroke

Objective: to control the amount of water and ink
Load the brush with more concentrated ink at the tip and more water in the body. Draw a long horizontal line and observe how it changes from dark to light.

If the paper ‘opens up’, curls or absorbs the ink too quickly, the medium may be slowing you down. Here you can link to how to choose the right paper for Japanese painting.

Exercise 3: pressure points (enter and exit without dragging)

Objective: precision of contact

1. Support the brush.

2. Press lightly.

3. Lift without moving it.

Haz 12 puntos en cuadrícula. Este control es oro para hojas, pétalos y detalles.

Exercise 4: continuous curves (fluidity)

Objective: clean strokes without breaks
Draw wide curves without stopping the movement. Think of a continuous gesture, not of “drawing” a shape. Breathe in before and breathe out while executing.

To understand the relationship between discipline, calligraphy and ink painting, click here for the differences between sumi-e, suibokuga and shodō.

Exercise 5: bamboo-like segments (rhythm and pause)

Objective: rhythm with micro-pauses
Draw short straight segments, leaving micro-pauses between them. Do not try to ‘fill in’. Practise 2 rows.

This exercise is particularly suitable if you are thinking of practising traditional motifs live, as is often done in face-to-face workshops on Japanese ink painting (sumi-e).

Exercise 6: leaf in two strokes (pressure + release)

Objective: to control entry, pressure and release
Make a simple leaf in two brushstrokes: one for the left side and one for the right, seeking natural (not perfect) symmetry. Repeat 6 times.

Common mistakes that slow down progress (and how to avoid them)

1) Holding the brush like a pen

Solution: return to the vertical brush and let your arm guide you rather than your fingers.

2) Repeating strokes to ‘correct’ them

Solution: accept the stroke and repeat it in another space. The training is in the next attempt.

3) Practising in a hurry

Solution: reduce your goals. Better 8 conscious strokes than 50 automatic ones.

4) Using paper that complicates everything

Solution: adjust the paper and water load. (This links perfectly to the post on paper already included above.)

How to know if you are improving (without obsessing over the result)

Measure your progress by technical signs, not by ‘whether it looks nice’:

• more stable line thickness

• cleaner curves (less shaking)

• more intentional gradients

• more controlled entries and exits

If you want to compare how the white of the paper ‘breathes’ in finished pieces (and what a confident stroke looks like), you can look at original sumi-e works.

Frequently asked questions about brush exercises in sumi-e

1. How long should I practise each day to improve my strokes?
   Ten minutes of focused practice each day is enough to see improvement in a few weeks.

2. Is it better to practise lines or start directly with flowers and bamboo?
   First, master the strokes (lines, dots, gradations). Then move on to motifs. Strokes are the foundation.

3. Can I use liquid ink or do I need stick ink?
   Both are fine. Stick ink helps you understand density and water, but for daily exercises you can use liquid ink if you control the load.

4. Should I repeat the same exercise every day?
   Yes. Stick to 2–3 fixed exercises for a week and only change one. Conscious repetition speeds up progress.

5. What should I do if the paper curls?
   Reduce the water, use less ink, or change the paper. Humidity also has an influence.

6. Can I practise on any paper?
   You can, but it’s not ideal. The paper completely changes the result and the feel of the stroke.

7. When is it a good idea to sign up for classes?
   When you want correction, structure, or notice that you are repeating the same mistake. Guidance prevents bad habits from forming.