Before we dive in headfirst to drawing faces (pardon the pun), let’s spend some time sketching the beauty underneath. Observing the structure will help us draw facial features in the correct positions.
I review three foundational drawing techniques in the video, first taught to me by my high school art teacher, Ms. Teague.
Negative space - drawing the space around the subject first.
Continuous line - keeping your pen or pencil on the page the whole time you’re drawing.
Blind contour - Not looking at your paper while you draw, only the subject.
Because I’m so hardheaded (there we go with the puns again), I resisted these methods when Ms. Teague taught us in class. I didn’t want to look at my hand instead of the paper when she told us to draw it. I remember cursing her in my head when she took us outside to sketch negative space between the tree branches.
Thankfully, I returned to them years later. These three techniques, especially negative space, help us learn to see what’s actually in front of us. They get us out of our heads, so we can draw the subject, instead of what our brain tells us is there.
Try them with the references below!
Which of the techniques do you go back to when you’re drawing these skulls?
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