The Big Expressions Post

The next stop on my face and head drawing practice is expressions - the 6 major expressions. There are many expressions the face can make which can arise from internal emotional states as well as come from external sources. I've focused on the major 6 expressions because most expressions can be derived through some combination of the 6. A lot of what I learned here came from the book "Making Comics" by Scott McCloud.

The muscles of the face along with their umm... simpler names

I've tried to boil each expression down into a simpler form. The face has a lot of skin and muscle that bulges around, and it can get a little overwhelming to think about that as you try to draw an expression. As long as you retain the principles of each expression I think the viewer will have an easier time reading the desired expression. I've also added some examples from various animated sources to go along with each expression.

 Expressions and their underlying emotions can have varying intensities. The lower the intensity the subtler the expression. I find subtle expressions are harder to distinguish, but are very important in alerting a reader as to what a character might be thinking or feeling. Context helps, but I think it might be required to exaggerate an expression a little bit to get the desired effect.

Well, that's pretty much it. I've learned it all. Just kidding, but I feel like I've got a good base now. I'd like to explore some of the different styles I see other artists draw their faces in so that's what I'll be trying out in the next couple of weeks! I look forward to posting it here :)