Proportional Systems Facial Features
. The first things you might notice In this draw-
I ing of a head are the beautiful and complex details, butthe details are not what make
% this drawing great, What is important to notice Is that the smaller forms are drawn so
that they appear to.rest gracefully on top of the larger mass of the head Itself. Heads drawn by Michelangelo always give the Illusion of being a solid mass In space.
When deciding on the placement of the features, if is helpful to divide the face into thirds. You might want to run light horizontal lines around the oval-like mass of the face at the level of the features. The forehead from the hairline to the brow [A) would represent one third; the nose would represent the second third; and the space from the bottom of the nose (8) to the bottom of the chin {CJ would take up the last third. This last section can be further subdivided Into thirds In order «m to place the mouth and chin correctly. The separation of the Hps will be at the bottom of
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the first third; the top of the chin will be near the bottom of the second third; dnd the bottom of the chin will beatthe bottom of the last third, You have to say "near" or "about" when C G speaking of measurements because there are no absolute rules; you can just notice how closely the features of the model correspond to the classical proportions outlined above, In terms of depth, the relationship of the features must also be clearly established. The nose Is farther forward than the mouth; the ' j ,, \ upper lip is more forward than the lower lip;
\ f ; and the chin Is farther back then the mouth,
V —r^"4 j ! . Try drawing construction lines—horizontal,
-—■■'■■ "V vertical, and diagonal—from one feature to
/ *"■ * r ■ another, The philtrum (D), or area above the
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center of the upper Hp extends downward from the center of the base of the nose. The [ * ' U philtrum forms a most Interesting plane; It Is concave from top to bottom and also con cave from side to side. This is the only plane of its kind on the entire figure.
The more sensitive you ore to relotionships between various features, the better your drawings will be. Mote that an Imaginary ver-tlcol line extending upward from the back of the wing of the nose would connect this point of origin with the inner corner of the eye. When positioning the fea- Notice too that the chin strap [E] in this fares, it is helpful to divider the drawing serves as a contour line that helps to explain the curved cspect of the under plane of the lower jaw (F], The chin strap also separates the lower jaw from another curved plane, the cylinder of the neck (G). You can see thatthe chin Intersects the neck at a lower level than does the back of the skull. The base of the neck Is lower in front than in back, which gives it a forward thrust.
face into thirds with light horizontal lines.
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