How to Draw Stylized Faces
Introduction: How to Draw Stylized Faces
If you have ever wanted to learn how to draw a face but you didn’t know where to start, then these instructions will hopefully lead you in the right direction. As a beginning artist, despite wanting to draw faces, you may have trouble knowing where certain features should go and why they belong there. In these instructions, I will give you the basics of drawing faces, both stylized and realistic (depending on what you prefer), as well as a few tips and tricks that helped me when I was a beginner as well. Along the way, I will be showing you examples of different features. Feel free to use the examples I have included as a reference for your own drawings. Let’s begin!
Supplies
A sheet of paper. Any kind of paper is suitable, but a blank, white sheet is preferable for beginners.
A pencil. The kind of pencil is a matter of personal preference. You may use art pencils, such as these, but I simply like to use a mechanical pencil!
An eraser. Again, you may use an eraser like this one, but I use the eraser on my mechanical pencil.
A reference image. I will talk more about these below, but here is my Pinterest board of reference images I have compiled.
Step 1: Find a Reference
If you find drawing a face to be intimidating, a good idea is to find a reference image. A reference image is a picture that you, as an artist, can closely analyze and try to imitate on the page. This step is especially helpful for people who are just starting out, and who have trouble knowing where features should go and what each shape should look like. As a beginner, you should try to find a picture of a person who is facing the camera, preferably with little or no facial expression. When you begin to progress, then you can move on to more advanced expressions and angles.
I like to keep a board on Pinterest filled with images of interesting faces. This may be useful for you as well! Whenever you would like to practice your drawing skills, you can go into this board and pick out a different face. Each time you draw a unique feature, you add to your knowledge. If you would like to use my board of faces, I have linked it above under Supplies & Resources. 608
For this tutorial, I will be using the above image. If you are following along, you may use the same image or pick a different one that you like better.
Step 2: Sketch Out the Face Shape
So, where exactly should an artist begin when drawing the face? The answer is that there isn’t one solid answer. Different artists start drawing the face in different places. However, I find it easiest for beginners to start by making a quick, light sketch of the face shape. Faces come in a bunch of unique shapes and sizes. These shapes include oval, heart, square, round, diamond, and oblong.
Typically, you can tell by the shape of the jaw, chin, and forehead, and their sizes in relation to one another. For example, <PERSON> has an oval-shaped face because her cheekbones are wider than the widths of her forehead and jaw, creating an oval shape. <PERSON> has a square-shaped face because her jaw is strong and sharp, and it is the same width as her cheekbones and forehead, creating a square shape. And the reference image I have chosen for these instructions has a heart-shaped face, as her forehead is wider than her jaw, and her chin comes to a point, creating a heart shape.
Your light sketch of the face shape does not have to be perfect. We will be fixing it up later. For now, we just need a general shape where we can put in her facial features. Remember to closely look at your reference image. What shape is her chin? Is it rounded? Pointed? Is there a cleft? How does the chin connect to the jawline? How far up from this jawline are her cheekbones? These are questions to take into consideration during your sketch. Worry less about perfection and more about how your lines interact with each other.
Step 3: Eyes
After you’ve quickly drawn the general shape of the face, we can now move on to the features. I like to start with the eyes! Eyes, just like faces, come in different shapes. The most common shapes are almond, hooded, downturned, upturned, and monolidded. I've included some examples.
Almond eyes look like almonds, hence the name. The inner corner of the eye is in line with the outer corner. Hooded eyes look a bit like almond eyes, but the skin above their eyes and beneath their eyebrows cover portions of the eyelids. 608