Drawing: Faces & Expressions

Learn to draw step by step

Diane Cardaci

• Publisher: Walter Foster Publishing
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9781633228528
• eBook ISBN: 9781633228535
• Topic: Arte
• Subtopic: Técnicas artísticas

With Drawing: Faces & Expressions, learn to draw detailed, realistic human faces in graphite pencil from basic shapes.

Perfect for beginning artists, Faces & Expressions offers a comprehensive introduction on how to draw faces and expressions—the most important aspects of an individual. First, learn everything about the tools and materials you need to get started, including selecting the right pencils, papers, and erasers for their work. Then discover tips for drawing and shading techniques, such as how to achieve volume, suggest depth, and render various hair and skin textures. With some knowledge of pencil drawing basics, begin mastering the art of drawing the human face through a series of helpful examples and easy-to-follow, step-by-step projects. Projects include a child portrait, an adult portrait, a senior portrait, and others that feature different techniques for capturing expressions and rendering features, including eyes, mouths, noses, and hands.

Featuring the stunning artwork of gifted artist Diane Cardaci, this 10.25 × 13.75–inch book features artwork designed to inspire a classical approach to rendering faces in graphite pencil. With its wide-ranging instruction, plethora of artist tips, and beautiful artwork, Faces & Expressions is the perfect resource for any beginning portrait artist.

Designed for beginners, the How to Draw & Paint series offers easy-to-follow guides that introduce artists to basic tools and materials and include simple step-by-step lessons for a variety of projects suitable for the aspiring artist. Drawing: Faces & Expressions allows artists to develop drawing skills by demonstrating how to start with basic shapes and use pencil and shading techniques to create varied textures, values, and details for a realistic, completed portrait drawing.

TOOLS & MATERIALS

The first step for any drawing project is to gather the necessary tools and materials. Deciding which tools to use depends on your subject and which materials you are most comfortable using. The tools and materials detailed here will help you get started.

PENCILS

Intricate or detailed drawings call for harder leads, or H pencils. Hard pencils are labeled 9H to H, with the highest number being the hardest. Soft pencils run from B to 9B, with 9B being the softest. Soft pencils create much darker lines and velvety tones. You can also choose graphite lead holders that come in different diameters, or woodless pencils, which have the advantage of a larger diameter lead.

PENCIL STROKES

On the sample shown here, I used a 5H pencil, which has a hard lead. On the sample below, I used a 6B pencil, which has a much softer lead. You can see how the strokes of the 5H pencil are much sharper.

SHARPENERS

If you choose a traditional pencil, you will also need a sharpener. You can use a small, handheld sharpener or an electric sharpener. To sharpen lead in a lead holder, you will need a specialized sharpener called a “pointer.” Flat sketching pencils can be chiseled on a sandpaper pad.

ERASERS

My favorite eraser is the kneaded eraser, which can be molded to give you a lot of control over what you want to erase. There are also vinyl erasers and electric erasers. It is also very handy to have an erasing shield, which works like a stencil and protects other parts of the drawing.

BLENDING TOOLS

There are several tools that can be used to smudge and blend graphite. A blending stump is made of paper and has two pointed ends that can be used for blending. A tortillon is similar, but is hollow and has only one point. When you’re working with a larger area, you can use a chamois cloth for blending.

PAPER

The quality of your paper directly influences the appearance of your artwork. Paper is often categorized by its “tooth,” or surface texture. The paper’s tooth affects the smoothness of your drawing and the number of graphite layers you can apply before the paper rips. Below are the most common surface types:

• Hot-pressed paper has little to no tooth, resulting in smooth textures.

• Cold-pressed paper has more tooth than hot-pressed paper; its grainy surface yields more textured strokes.

• Rough paper features a coarse tooth that creates rough, broken strokes.

I prefer working on Bristol paper—a thick paper that is available in a sm...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Contents
• Tools & Materials
• Drawing Process
• Copyright