Portrait Sketch Journal: Exploring Facial Muscle Structures through Practice.
This session focused on refining details through iterative adjustments, capturing subtle variations in marks. The model's clothing had a distinct touch of traditional European attire.
Side note: Often, I found myself overworking the sketch—accidentally adding stubble to a girl's face or emphasizing wrinkles too much, transforming her into an elderly lady! 🙂↕️
Curious about the positions and roles of facial muscles, I compiled the following breakdown. If you’re interested, follow along and refer to the illustrations provided!
Overview of Key Facial Muscles:
● Frontalis Muscle
Location: Forehead. Function: Raises the eyebrows and creates forehead wrinkles. Often involved in expressions of surprise (wide-open eyes).
● Orbicularis Oculi (Sphincter Muscle)
Location: Encircles the eye. Function: Closes the eyelids and controls blinking. Natural wrinkles around this area appear with smiling.
● Zygomaticus Major
Location: Extends from the cheekbone to the corner of the mouth. Function: Elevates the corners of the mouth, creating smiles—a key muscle for depicting joyful expressions.
● Orbicularis Oris (Sphincter Muscle)
Location: Surrounds the lips. Function: Controls the opening and closing of the mouth, essential for portraying speech, whistling, or puckering.
● Depressor Anguli Oris
Location: At both corners of the mouth. Function: Pulls the corners of the mouth downward, conveying sadness or dissatisfaction.
● Masseter Muscle
Location: Side of the face (cheek area). Function: Closes the jaw, playing a major role in chewing or clenching the teeth.
● Temporalis Muscle
Location: On the sides of the skull.
Function: Controls jaw movement, especially opening and closing.
Feature: The temporalis muscle fans out along both sides of the skull, aiding in jaw movement.
Location: On the sides of the skull.
Function: Controls jaw movement, especially opening and closing.
Feature: The temporalis muscle fans out along both sides of the skull, aiding in jaw movement.
I hope this breakdown helps you better understand and appreciate facial muscle structures. If you have any questions or would like to explore specific topics, feel free to leave a comment or message me. Happy drawing!
Other Related Portrait Sketching Articles:
How to Use Two-Tone Shading: Simple Shadow Techniques
How to Draw Masks: Use Perspective and Shadows
How to Accurately Master Hand Proportions and Joint Structure
Building Up from Simple Contours to Detailed Eye Portraits
Capturing Realism in Lip Drawing: Key Structures and Shading
Understanding the Three Key Elements of Head Structure
Mastering the basic proportions and structure of portrait drawing
