Portrait painting tips – Part 7

Portrait art may seem daunting to young artists, even if it’s the art form they most desire to learn. Despite the stylized work done by famous cubists, impressionists, etc., what most people want when they commission a portrait is a good likeness that also allows the subject’s personality to shine through.

For the first part of this, I can offer a tried and true method, that costs almost nothing: Using photos in magazines (I suggest National Geographic because of the diversity offered there), choose one subject a day and draw it with an ordinary pencil in a large sketch pad or even on a sheet of typing paper. Do the best you can in no more than an hour. At the end of that time, put aside your effort, keeping it only for reference as you progress. The next day, try another. (Never return to a previous one to try to improve it; it has served its purpose.) Continue this way for 30 days.

Some rough guidelines to bear in mind as you do this: *Proportion is as important as shape. A person’s face is unique partly due to such things as a long or short upper lip (the distance between the bottom of the nose and the top lip), widely- or narrowly-set eyes, and so forth.

*In very young children the top of the eye just touches an imaginary line dividing the face equally between top and bottom. An adult, on the other hand, has grown longer in the lower half of the face so that the eyes are now set approximately on TOP of the same line. A teenager will be somewhere in between.

*In a left or right profile, the front of the ear tends to be about halfway back from the front of the face.

If you have a natural ability, your 30 days of practice should result in a fair degree of competency in the achievement of a good likeness. (When I haven’t drawn or painted in some time, I use this method to brush up on my skills.)

Before going from drawing to painting, I suggest that you try pastels, learning to blend the colors with your fingertips, blending stumps (available in art supply stores) or whatever else comes to hand when the need arises. You will find yourself leaning in one direction or another in style… You may like a dramatic style, with receding areas very dark and defined, or you may prefer a softer approach. Of course, when you have a subject before you, you will adapt your style to suit the person’s personality. Talk with him or her, try to bring out more than just the lines of the face as they look when posed.

How do you get commissions? Start out by doing pencil or pastel drawings as gifts to friends and their families, for birthdays or other similar events. If you want to get into painting, practice this during the “gift” period, so you’re ready when someone wants something more formal… for pay.