6 Elements of Pencil Portrait Sketching

Pencil Portrait Drawing—6 Elements of Portrait Sketching

September 15th, 2008 · No Comments

By Remi Engels, guest blogger

Sketching in always entails 4 separate elements: line, value, texture, and shape. In the special case of pencil portrait sketch we can refine the list of elements to six: shape, proportion, anatomy, texture, tone, and planes.

In this commentary we will give a detailed account of each of those pencil portrait drawing elements.

(1) Form Shape or Shape – The illusion of 3-dimensionality in sketching and art in general has been central to Western art for centuries. The carving out of form using line, structure, and value was vital to almost all Renaissance art.

On the other hand, eastern and a great deal of contemporary art emphasize flatness of shape although this period in contemporary art is drawing to an end.

All form in drawing can be reduced to 4 fundamental 3-dimensional solids: cones, cylinders, spheres, and bricks. The correct use of these shapes together with perspective and value leads to the illusion of three-dimensionality even though the sketch is, in actuality, located on a 2-dimensional sheet of drawing paper.

In portrait sketching, the arabesque of the skull, the square structure of the skull, and all components within the head (nose, eyes, etc.) are all 2- and 3-dimensional shapes that add to the overall illusion of 3-dimensionality.

(2) Proportion – includes all sizing and placements of form. Proportion refers to the concept of relative length and angle size.

Proportion gives answers to these two questions:

1. Given a defined unit of length, how many units is a particular length?

2. How large is this particular angle?

Answering these 2 questions every time correctly will give a sketch with the correct proportions and placements of all forms.

(3) Anatomy – refers in effect to the underlying parts of bone and muscle of the head.

It is essential to learn as much as you can about anatomy. There are many books available on anatomy for the artist. For a portrait artist it is really important to understand the anatomy of the skull, neck, and shoulders.

Anatomy texts regrettably contain many Latin terms which makes it a bit complicated to grasp. The idea is to learn slowly and a little bit at a time because it can be very exasperating.

(4) Texture – in portrait drawing expresses the range of roughness or smoothness of the shapes. The texture of a concrete walk way, for instance, is quite different from that of a cloud.

There are several methods and tricks to assist you with the creation of the correct textures. Creating textures gives you the chance to be very creative and to use each possible type of score you can make with a pencil. In portrait drawing textures appear in spots such as hair, clothing, and skin.

(5) Tone – refers to the variations in light or dark of the pencil marks and cross-hatchings. Commanding portrait sketches employ the complete palette of contrasting lights and darks. Starting artists many times fail to achieve this full “stretch” of value, resulting in retiring, washed-out drawings.

(6) Planes – create the sculptural sensibility of a portrait. The head has numerous planes each with a unique direction and therefore with a different value.

The goal is to think of the surface of the head as a set of discrete planes with a particular direction relative to the light source. You should try to recognize each of the planes and sketch its correct form and value.

The correct handling of planes contributes a lot to the likeness of your model as well as the illusion of 3-dimensionality.

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