Information On Pencil Portrait Rendering - The Inclusive Construct

Suppose that we have a pose where the skull, arm, and fingers are visible and are in contact. Very often, the beginning artist will attempt to draw each of these elements individually. The approach will invariably lead to frustration and in the end often to disappointment.

Instead of sketching each element separately, the first step in your drawing should be to draw the “full” arabesque, i.e., the entire outline of the figure. The whole arabesque which includes parts other than the skull (in this case the head, fingers, and arms) is called the “construct”.

For the novice it is best to reduce the construct to its simplest form thereby ignoring all the details such as the bumps in the fingers and the hair. With practice, you will be able to add all these bumps without much trouble as you go along.

A good construct (also known as a complete arabesque) also contains a singular gestural tempo that subordinates all details. In other words, this rhythmic gesture exists free of the minutia.

When you are drawing a single object or head the examination of the height/width sizing is fairly straightforward. As a universal rule the width of the skull is checked against its length making use of the base of the chin as the key marker.

If, for some reason the chin is conceiled (e.g., behind the arm or fingers), a different signpost must be found. The arm, the jaw, or the lines of the fingers are excellent places to find a new marker.

Once you have sketched a suitable construct it must be examined for correctness. To do this, we can, for instance, look for vertical and/or horizontal distances that are supposed to be the same and see if they in fact are equal. Use all your gained knowledge of sizing. Also use your general knowledge of anatomical placing of the ears, eyes, etc.

Once you are pleased that the construct is accurately sketched you can continue to hatch-in the prime light/dark pattern and take your first tentative stab at drawing the facial area, i.e., the placing of the brow, the eyes, the nose and the mouth. Again, if the usual signposts for those items can for some reason not be employed you should be imaginative enough to determine appropriate substitutes.

Keep blocking-in all entities as soon as you draw them. This includes the fingers, arms, and hair if any of them are visible in the given profile you are drawing. Remember to always sketch from the general to the specific.

Also, be sure to use a sharp pencil, take into account your knowledge of anatomy, and constantly look for errors and, of course, correct them.

Next, the pencil portrait sketch must now be worked-up tonally by cross-hatching with 8B, 2H, and 4H pencils, by blening the pencil dust with your fingers or a stump, and by using your putty eraser to define the lights. All this should be done in a sculpturally manner.

Finally, you can choose how much minutia you want to put into your sketch or how unresolved you may leave the drawing. For example, you can leave some parts of the fingers or the arm uncompleted. Or, if you want to emphasize a particular region of the portrait, you can add detail in that region and leave the other regions somewhat unfinished.

These are a few of many considerations that go into drawing a more complicated portrait that has a construct. One critical thing not to forget is to sketch the construct first so you do not end up sketching one item after another without maintaining harmony. Following these rules will surely put you on the correct path of sketching more complex portraits.

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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 by Remi.