Advice On Pencil Portrait Rendering - Drawing A Chin Supporting Hand Including Shoulders

Including a hand in your portraits adds a major measure of drama but can quickly destroy an otherwise fine portrait if done badly.

The goal is to integrate the hand so that it is not only proportionally and gestural correct, but is congruous in personality with the expression of the face.

For example, an agreeable facial expression juxtaposed with a clenched fist may not yield the effect you desire unless you intend to add an ironic twist to your portrait. On the other hand, a hand supporting the head goes very well with a stern scowling expression.

First, absolute beginners should not be attempting to draw both the hand and portrait together. Things will quickly get muddled. The lesson for the absolute beginner here is to get an understanding of the significance of acquiring a solid foundation of your skill.

In a pose where a hand supports the skull there exists a faint forward tilt because the subject is a little bit hunched and leaning forward. For the artist, this situation translates into the presence of a faintly foreshortened and reclined portrait. In the hand/head case this means that the chin is slightly receding relative to the forehead.

As always, you should start with the construct, which in this situation, includes the hand and the shoulder. If you first render the head and then attach the hand to it you are definitely asking for problems. The hand and the head will lack cohesion and will give the awkward impression that they are two distinct objects that are coincidentally next to each other.

When sketching the construct be aware of the negative as well as the positive spaces. Also, do not pre-measure any aspects of the construct. It should be rendered with as much flair as possible without losing your sense of size. Draw first then verify.

Further build upon the construct by locating the face, hand, and shoulder landmark
s and sizes. The internal architecture of the construct is initiated by hatching-in the primedarks and painting out the lights with a putty eraser.

What you are doing is to set the stage for articulating the facial features, the hand, and the shoulder. The hand must be established and proportioned in accordance with the skull and the facial features. The compression of the jaw into the palm must also be taken into account.

Utilizing a sharp pencil you can now further develop the tone and form with cross-hatching, stumping down, and painting out. In this, you will be going back and forth hoping that you know when to quit. Sketching is about making decisions, i.e., knowing what to build up and, just as significant, knowing what to leave out.

In the hand/skull situation you have to be extra careful how far you develop the hand. The hand should be seen as a prop, that is, a supporting element that should not be part of the focus. Do not feel compelled to refine every element in your drawing. Everything in drawing is about balance and transferring your meaning directly to the viewer’s eye.

In conclusion, it is important to see the hand and the shoulder as parts of one whole. Starting your drawing with sketching the complete arabesque will aid you greatly with maintaining this harmony. Treat the hand and shoulder as props that surround the face. This means that you should draw them in a subordinate role.

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Remi Engels is a pencil portrait artist and oil painter and practiced sketching teacher. See his work at graphite pencil portraits.

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