In the photo below, you may be able to guess who the character is from the 5-minute sketch--because there is 'essence'. That begs the questions of what is essence, how does one select minimal elements to convey essence, and how do you tell if you've captured it?
What gives the sketch below the sense of essence I'm talking about? First, you have to recognize the person being captured. This particular image is based on Lady Danforth, a character from the Bridgerton series. If you don't know the series, you may not have perceived 'an essence' that you can relate to. If this true for you, make a mental note of the sketch you've seen here. Down-the-road you may see one of the shows with her in it and recall you've seen her somewhere. That is the kind of recognition between one form and another that clues you in that the work has that essence.
What do you look for in selecting the elements to help convey essence? First, essence can come from different elements or combinations of them depending on the subject. Some things that can do it when drawing faces include head tilt, eyebrow shapes, the smile, lip thickness, hairstyle, head decoration (e.g. hat, crown, flowers), age lines, the expression, the nasolabial lines (those from nose to lips), etc. Eventually, it will also involve the eyes (that convey the thought or feeling behind the expression and/or and how the face is contorting), and shadow and light. The latter is vital for adding realistic contours to the face and result in greater definition and dimension.
For the Lady Danforth quick sketch below, these four elements (to me) convey her essence:
- the distinctly-shaped hat (blending a Regency period woman's riding hat with that of a coutured accessory) that aligns with the head tilt;
- the high eyebrow arches that when raised are prominent and asymmetrical;
- the mouth area with her unique teeth shape (lips too); and,
- the jaw line and the complementary position of the nasolabial lines.
I don't recall consciously choosing these four elements when I sketched the piece. But in looking over past sketch posts, I generally start at the top of the head with its hair. I've also clearly learned the jaw line sets the tone for the piece. If it's off, the image will be too. But it is one of the lines I'm careful in placing (and sometimes correct) during the sketching process. I also like to add an outline of the brows since they are important to the face shape and the locations of the eyes and nose.
How do you tell if you've captured essence in your sketch? If it tickles you, that's a great start. For it to have essence though, the quick sketch needs to reduce the number of possible people the image could represent. That means the subject's most unique facial qualities will be helpful to focus on during the sketching process (whether up-front as as part of the detailing).
I loved doing this particular sketch because of the Lady Danforth pose...its inquisitive and evaluative while poised. I find it fun when you can capture the qualities of a person in addition to their looks!
As with most all my sketches, the initial work was done with Muji pen. Shadow was added with mechanical pencil and some echo lines and cross-hatching in pen. A white Posca pen was used for the dots in the eyes.
What is your approach to quick sketching and how does it dovetail or differ from finalizing a sketch into a drawing?
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