How to Draw a Realistic Mouth in Charcoal - Excerpts from Live Lesson

By Matt Fussell

The video featured on this page featured is from excerpts taken of an hour long live lesson that aired in the member section of this site on January 30, 2013.  To see the video in real time, complete with commentary, visit Charcoal Drawing of an Mouth Live Lesson. 

This tutorial addresses drawing a closed mouth with vine and compressed charcoal on gray drawing paper.  The steps that are followed in this tutorial can be applied to any drawing of a mouth. Like with any type of drawing however, it is best to closely observe your subject matter and draw what you see.  There is seldom a set formula that works for drawing mouths.  There is an order that can be followed, but observation is key in creating a realistic drawing of a mouth.

Here's a quick look at the steps involved...

Step One -Define the contours of the mouth.

Step Two - Add lines that will become
the texture of the lips.

Step Three - Continue adding lines
for the texture of the lips.

Step Four -Begin layering draker
values .

Step Five - Begin to add areas of
lighter values with white charcoal.

Step Six - Add areas of value around
the outside of the mouth .

Step Seven - Blend areas to create
smooth transitions of value.

Step Eight - The completed drawing
using white and black charcoal.

The following video features excerpts from the full one hour tutorial...