How to Draw Lips Step by Step

Learning to draw human faces can be easier if you study the features individually, and master the shapes and shading for each feature. In this tutorial, we will study how to draw the lips from a 3/4 view, as when the person is facing away at a slight angle.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Pencil
• Paper
• Eraser
• Artist's "stump" (optional)

1. 
   Sketch or lightly trace shape

   Find a reference photograph, sculpture or a person willing to pose for you. If you are a beginner, try using a magazine cover or photograph and some lightweight paper or tracing paper to get the general outline of the lips. Trace or draw the outline lightly. You may notice that the shape looks a bit flat and peculiar, because the real depth and dimension in a drawing comes from the depiction of light and shadow of the form. If you are tracing an image, once you have the general shape, stop tracing and begin shading by looking at the picture.

2. 
   Sketch main creases

   Start laying in the main creases in the lips with some sketchy lines. A realistic drawing of lips will depict the creases and folds accurately. If your creases are misplaced a bit, just erase and try again. It is important to have fairly accurate placement of the elements to help as a guide for the shading and highlights.

3. 
   Shade upper lip

   Begin shading on the upper lip. The shadow on the upper lip will be darker than the lower lip. Use your crease-marks as guidelines, and start shading the darkest areas first. Shade in the dark, slim shadows between the upper and lower lips. Pay close attention to the shapes of the lighter areas. Remember to use the eraser to make small corrections as you go. Continually compare your image with the photograph, sculpture or model.

4. 
   Shade lower lip

   Continue the shading, starting on the lower lip. Pay attention to the highlights--in other words, the light that reflects most brightly from the shiny surface of the lips. If you have correct placement of the highlights, your drawing will take on a realistic, dimensional quality. Often, using the eraser to sharpen and brighten the highlights is necessary to define them with precision. Also pay attention to the aspect of shading on the forms. The dark areas of shading often have a lighter band or patch of color where light bouncing off a form below creates soft backlighting in the shadowed area. With a little effort and examination, you will be able to identify these areas and, with a combination of shading and soft re-touching with the eraser, draw out a dimensional form. (Artists of the Renaissance called this "Chiaroscuro," meaning the interplay of light and darkness in an artwork.)

5. 
   Finished drawing of lips

   When your shading of the lips is done, you just need to draw the shading on the face around the lips. Notice the shading at the corners of the mouth, and the cast shadows from the lips themselves on the chin below. Shade lightly. A tool that artists often use to smooth the shading is called a "stump." A stump is merely a rolled-up strip of soft paper with a conical-shaped point. They can be purchased at artist's supply stores. As an alternative, you may consider using a scrap of folded paper or cardboard to smudge and smooth the shading. Practice this technique before using it on a finished drawing.