GIMP won't let me draw / tools not working

There are many great drawing applications, but if you’re looking for a powerful drawing tool and image editor in one, then your best choice would be GIMP.

Sadly, many users reported that GIMP won’t let them draw at all. This can be a big problem, but today we’re going to show you how to fix this issue for good.

What can I do if GIMP won’t let me draw?

1. Make sure you have the correct layer selected

1. Double-check if you have the correct layer selected in GIMP.
    
2. Go to Select > None and ensure that you don’t have an area selected on the current layer.
   

These are some basic rules that you need to follow, but you’ll be surprised by how many users forget about these types of things.

2. Make sure that you’re not using a Clipboard brush

1. In GIMP, select the Brush tool.
2. Now select any other brush except the Clipboard Image brush.
   

After selecting a different brush, you should be able to draw without any issues.

3. Check the Brush tool settings

1. Select the Brush tool.
2. Now check the Mode and make sure that it’s set to Normal.
3. As for Opacity, make sure that it’s set to 100.
4. As for additional settings, be sure to check Size and Hardness and ensure that their values aren’t too low.
   

These settings affect other tools as well, so be sure to always check them.

4. Make sure that your layers aren’t locked

1. In GIMP, locate the Layers panel.
   
2. Now inspect all layers and make sure that your currently selected layer isn’t locked.

For the layer to be completely unlocked, it’s important that all three icons aren’t selected. However, for drawing, only the brush icon needs to be unselected.

This isn’t the only issue, and if libgimp-2.0-0.dll is not found on your PC, you might not be able to run certain plug-ins at all.

There are several reasons why GIMP won’t let you draw, and we hope that you managed to fix that problem with our solutions.