# Draw a folding fan in Aquarell: bring pleats and ribs to one pivot Language: en Canonical: [Draw a folding fan in Aquarell: bring pleats and ribs to one pivot]() 中文：[中文 HTML]() English: [English HTML]() Published: 2026-11-05T00:00:00+08:00 Modified: 2026-11-05T09:38:59+08:00 Author: Bison Hand-draw an open folding fan, checking its shared pivot, alternating planes and a pattern continuing across the pleats. English translation of the [Chinese original](), translated on 2026-11-05. Original publication dates, attribution, code and version notes are retained. A folding fan is more than a semicircle divided into separately coloured pieces: its planes share an origin, and its decoration turns with the paper. Draw a paper fan that is open without being flattened, retaining its outer arc, inner arc and exposed ribs. The goal is to show alternating raised and recessed folds without turning every crease into an unrelated black gap. All divisions, colours and decoration are drawn by hand, without relying on automatic folding or perspective tools. ## Choose the spread and a single pivot Create an approximately 1800×1400 px landscape canvas with a pale cream background. Place the pivot low in the image and draw the two outer ribs first, spreading about 120 degrees, then sketch the outer arc. This angle is a practice choice, not a universal fan specification. The two ends may sit at slightly different heights, but there must not be a second convergence point in the middle. Separate sketch, paper, ribs and decoration into layers, using low sketch opacity. Check that the silhouette leaves space around it. If an outer rib hits the canvas edge, adjust the whole spread or position rather than shortening just that rib. ## Divide the rhythm with a few radial lines Draw eight to ten guide rays from the pivot to the outer arc. Check each against the same origin, comparing intervals around the arc rather than horizontally across the canvas. You need not reproduce a real rib count yet; fewer, larger folds are easier to verify. If one side crowds while the other spreads out, move the guides instead of blackening narrow cells as false shadows. Place the inner arc above the pivot, exposing some rib length below the paper. Both arcs should bound the same fan-shaped region. Hide the paper colour and trace every ray smoothly from the outer edge to the pivot; none should turn midway toward another origin. ## Alternate raised and recessed folds Treat two neighbouring small planes as a pair, one facing the light slightly more and the other facing away, alternating across the fan. Begin with pale and mid blue-grey before adding decoration. A ridge marks a change between planes; not every rib needs an equally thick black outline. Give the outer edge a slight folded rhythm rather than adding interior creases inside a perfectly smooth rigid silhouette. If three consecutive planes are equally light, revisit their neighbouring relationships. If the fan resembles a sawtooth metal sheet, reduce the value contrast and lighten the crease edges. Show folded relief while preserving the sense of one paper sheet. ## Expose ribs below the paper Paint the slender exposed ribs between the pivot and inner arc in warm brown, with the two outer ribs slightly wider than the interior ones. Gather them beneath a small round pivot pin instead of stopping each before it reaches the pin, and keep the pin small enough not to resemble a ball handle. The paper-covered portions need not all show as heavy bones; a few subtle suggestions suffice. If rib lines appear to slash across the front of the paper, correct their overlap or shorten their visible lengths before adding wood grain. Check that both outer ribs extend along the paper edges. One should not leave the fan to cross the background while the other stays aligned, unless you deliberately choose a different separated state. ## Establish one continuous decoration path Choose a slender branch motif crossing the middle of the fan. Sketch its overall continuous route at low opacity, then adjust its width and direction within each plane. A valley may hide a little of the branch, and a ridge may change its apparent direction, but successive portions should still connect. Do not centre the same copied flower in every division, making the sheet resemble separate cards. Check continuity in one dark-blue colour before adding two or three leaves. If the design jumps too far at a crease, move the branch portions on both sides of the break. Thickening the crease to conceal the gap would hide an error rather than describe the surface. ## Control lighting beyond alternating fills Under upper-left lighting, similarly oriented fold types need not have exactly the same brightness everywhere. Preserve the basic alternation, then darken the right-hand side slightly overall and concentrate a little shadow near the pivot. Keep this broad colour change smaller than the main fold contrast rather than turning one side into a black hole. Hide the decoration and check that the planes remain readable, then restore it to see whether the motif overwhelms the form. If the fan resembles a checkerboard, weaken the separate cell outlines and keep neighbouring lit planes close to the same paper colour. Soften only selected transitions; a broad smearing pass would erase every ridge and valley. ## Diagnose with plain and simplified versions In a copy, hide the decoration and retain only four or five fold pairs. Check whether the spread comes from a shared pivot or merely from dense lines. Sketch a second, narrower fan with the outer ribs brought inward and the visible fold widths reduced accordingly, rather than simply cropping part of the outer arc. Side by side, the inner and outer arcs and the ribs should agree with each fan’s opening state. If you cannot identify how it closes, the first image may only be a striped semicircle; redraw the plane boundaries. This is a manual construction study, not a claim that the fan can be manufactured directly or deformed automatically. ## Turn the outer border through every fold If you add a narrow border near the outer arc, turn it separately through every plane rather than suspending one curved line outside the paper. Its apparent width changes a little at ridges and retreats at valleys without breaking into unrelated patches. Hide the branch motif and inspect the distance between border and paper edge; an unusually wide section may suggest an extra paper layer. If the border merges with crease shadows, lower its saturation or retain it only in selected parts instead of adding black outlines. The border is optional; the underlying folded boundaries must remain sound without it. ## Preserve valleys and fine decoration in output At normal size, check the hierarchy between outer ribs, paper and pin, then reduce the image to see whether it still reads as an open fan. After PNG export, inspect whether the right-hand shadows have merged and whether the fine branch still connects across creases. If the motif disappears at small size, first reduce the leaf count or slightly adjust the branch width instead of darkening all creases together. Save the layered original and a plain preview for future decorations on the same structure. Record one specific fault, such as an overly dark fourth valley or a left outer rib that fails to reach the pivot, so the next correction has a definite location. ## Related tutorials and sources [Draw a folded map in Aquarell: turn printed lines with the folds](); [Paint an umbrella in Aquarell: describe an open canopy through ribs and panels](). Sources checked on 5 November 2026: the [official Aquarell App Store listing]() and [Apple Lookup]() show version 1.0.7, requiring iOS / iPadOS 15.0 or later. The drawing uses the publicly described brush, colour, layer and saving capabilities manually. Sizes, shapes and colours are practice suggestions; confirm controls against the installed version. Keep the native artwork for further editing and use PNG for previews. This batch does not claim step-by-step device testing.