The Drawing EZine. The Drawing EZine features ELEMENTS OF FACIAL EXPRESSION Part 1. Artacademy.com

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1 The Drawing EZine Artacademy.com The Drawing EZine features ELEMENTS OF FACIAL EXPRESSION Part 1 T the most difficult aspect of portrait drawing is the capturing of fleeting facial expressions and their emotions. In this two part tutorial I will cover two of the six major expressions: These are happiness, melancholy, surprise, fear (anxiety), anger and disgust (contempt). Of these six expressions there are innumerable degrees. Happiness, for example, can be expressed subtly with a gentle, delicate smile or a loopy hilarity.

2 In this month s tutorial my focus will be the gentle smile which is a definite challenge. The slightest change in muscle action will significantly alter this expresion. Several considerations must be dealt with, namely, the arabesque, the initial tonal structure, and the anatomy. But before delving into this there is an important caveat to mention regarding the portrait tutorials. Every tutorial focuses on a specific element of portrait drawing and, as such, presupposes that you have an understanding of the fundamentals of portrait drawing. In other words, the tutorials build upon the lessons taught in the Mastering Portrait Drawing DVD Workshops. Your portrait drawing education with Artacademy.com is an ongoing endeavor. The Arabesque: Facial expression is fully incorporated in the arabesque. Shape denote emotions. Consider, for example, the smiling happy face symbol; the roundness of the face directly corresponds to the shape that a human face takes when smiling. Conversely, an elongated shape denotes melancholy, i.e., the expression Why the long face?

3 Incorporated within the arabesque is the hand upon which the head is resting. The effect of the pressure of the head on the hand pushes up the cheek. Tone: My initial blocking-in of the tone and placement of the features is where I work out the primary facial expression. A smile lifts up the entire face, not just the mouth. Depending upon the extremeness of the smile the upper face will exhibit very subtle movement. The forehead, for example, will generally not crease, but the eyebrows will be slightly raised and rounded. A big smile often results in radiating wrinkles from the outer corners of the eyes (crow s feet) and the distance from the base of the nose to the mouth decreases (the philtrum, which is the trough) shortens. Anatomy: The major indicators of a gentle smile are found in the Upper Labial Tractor which is the top portion of the mouth and lower areas of the cheeks. There are three main muscles that effect a smile: Buccinator, Malaris and the Zygomaticus Major. The muscle that widens the mouth when smiling is the Buccinator (Blue). This quadrilateral muscle forms the cheek pad. It originates on the rear, inside of the jaw and attaches to the Nodes (Yellow Ochre) of the mouth. The Nodes help form the small depression at the corners of the mouth. When we smile the Buccinator contracts thus pulling at the Nodes and widening the mouth.

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5 The Malaris is a long, ribbon-like deep-seated muscle. The Malaris originates at the Temporal Fossa and inserts into the Smile Line (Nasolabial Furrow). The Malaris pulls up the cheek in an outwards and back direction. Of course, a smile requires some muscles to lift up the corners of the mouth. The first of these muscles is the Incisivus Labii Superioris and Inferioris. The Superioris (top) does the lifting. This narrow, band-like muscle originates just above the incisor tooth area and also inserts into the Node. When fully contracted, a puckering up of the lips (a kiss) is produced.

6 The Levator Labii Superioris is a thin, quadrilateral muscle whose effect on the smile is somewhat limited. However the upper part of this muscle contributes to the volume of the cheek the Nasolabial Furrow. When you re rendering the Nasolabial Furrow be careful not to over-do it. A delicate suggestion is all that is needed. Otherwise your lovely smile will quickly degenerate into a sneer. Better known as the muscle of sadness is the Zygomaticus Minor. This narrow, ribbon-like muscles extends from the frontal portion of the cheek bone (Zygomatic bone) and inserts into the Nasolabial Furrow before continue down into the upper lip. The Zygomaticus Minor does not pull up the corners of the mouth, it does, however, deepen the mid-section of the Nasolabial Furrow and contributes to the volume of the cheek.

7 The main muscle of happiness is the Zygomaticus Major. This elongated muscle originates at the frontal area of the Zygomatic Arch (cheek bone proper) and inserts into the Node of the mouth. The contraction of the Zygomaticus Major bulges and lifts the cheek while further deepening the Nasolabial Furrow. As the mouth is widened and pulled by both the Zygomaticus Major and Buccinator the lips are stretched and flattened. So, too, is the chin. The Philtrum is shortened and the nostrils flare slightly. A curious muscle is the Risorius; not everyone has this muscle, some people only have a Risorius on one side of their face, others have a large, expansive triangular shaped Risorius. This muscle originates in the fatty tissue of a large deep seated muscle called the Masseter (whose action is used mainly for chewing) and inserts into the Node of the mouth. The Risorius subtly pulls the Node backwards and up. Its effect is generally noticed in gentle smiles.

8 The seven main smiling muscles of the Upper Labial Tractor are shown here in the 7/8 s profile view. (This image is from my Mastering Portrait Drawing 2: The 7/8s Profile Workshop.) A good, working knowledge of facial anatomy is a crucial element to improving your portrait drawing skills. Using both a 2H and a 4H graphite pencil I further developed the structure of the face by cross-hatching. I also use a kneaded eraser in a painterly fashion to develop and further finesse the lights. Note the eyes here. One is more open than the other the intended effect is a relaxed, almost dreamy expression. Deciding where to leave off on your drawing is a personal decision. In this case I decided to leave the hand and hair at a very unfinished, sketchy state. This provides a stronger focus onto the face.

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