How to Draw Faces

I LOVE portrait painting. It is one of my favorite things to do, is draw faces. Nothing excites me more, than to bring to life: eyes, lips, a nose, an entire face on paper or canvas! 🙂 What is especially rewarding, is painting a loved one who has passed on in this life. I know first-hand what it means to lose someone and have your heart ache. I know for me, I need to see them again, in an ideal place like heaven, in the comforting hands of Christ, or in a favorite place. I need to see them happy. So you may be feeling the same way, wanting to paint someone you have lost or draw someone you really love! Here are a few recent portraits I have drawn, using a Wacom Tablet Intuos 5, drawn in Adobe Photoshop CC. Here is how to draw faces, in this step by step visual example:

How to Draw Faces

Joni

Begin with a quick outline:

Than do a quick wash of the skin base color and shadows:

Than fill in the detail and add highlights:

Grace

A quick outline:

Add a wash of the base skin tones and begin adding shadows and highlights:

Finish with details, and always add a background splash:

Author Box 04
About the Artist

I am an advocate first, and an artist second. My paintings create visual comfort-- spaces where grief, hope, and healing can live together without apology...

I paint what matters most: the people you cherish, the moments that shaped you, the feelings that need witness. Through art, your most precious memories move outside of you and into your home, where they can be held, seen, and never forgotten.

My work is rooted in three commitments: honoring the experiences of indigenous communities and the history of the land we inhabit; creating safe space for children and women whose voices have been silenced; and recording the honest truth of lived experience-- both my own and that of those who came before me. I believe art has the power to tell stories that words alone cannot, and to preserve what must not be lost or forgotten. I believe that all that we know about ourselves is because Art has preserved those stories throughout history, outliving those who created it.

When you encounter my work, I hope you find yourself in it-- not as escape, but as recognition. I hope it reminds you that your feelings matter, that your story deserves to be held, and that compassion and truth are still worth carrying forward.

Art is the voice that speaks honestly through the heart. 💝🪷