A caricature is a drawing of a real person which distorts or exaggerates certain
features, but still retains a likeness: in other words an exaggerated piece of portrait
art. Caricatures first became a popular
genre of fine
art in the 16th and 17th century. They
were created by satirists to ridicule public figures and politicians (a
caricature with a moral message is considered a satire). They continue to
remain popular today, and are used in magazines and newspapers to poke fun at
film stars, politicians, and celebrities. The only thing that has changed is
the artist tools. Initially caricaturists used charcoal
drawings, pencil or pen
and ink drawings, but today an artist has access to
graphics programs like Adobe Illustrator or Corel Painter.
Caricaturists
have wielded significant power with their pen far more so than a writer ever
could. In the early days of the genre they transmitted messages without the
need for the written word. Caricatures were important at a time in history when
the majority of the population could not read. One of the most famous examples
of this sort of graphic
art is the satirical etchings of Napoleon Bonaparte by the British artist James Gillray
(1756-1815). He depicted the French Emperor as very short and slightly
ridiculous, in an oversized hat. Today, we still think of Napoleon Bonaparte as
being shorter than he really was
The
word caricature comes from the Italian words carico and caricare,
meaning 'to load' or to 'exaggerate’. In the 1590s the Italian Annibale
Carracci (and his brother Agostino) applied
these words to some exaggerated portrait sketches they created. The
descriptions they left, mention that the images were meant for humor to mock
their own artistic theories which they taught at the Bologna Academy. The first
artist to set himself up as a professional caricaturist was called Pier Leone
Ghezzi (1674-1755). He was also a Rococo painter. Ghezzi made a healthy living
out of producing amusing drawings of tourists visiting Italy
Drawing caricatures can be a fun and
entertaining way to tap into a different form of art. If you can see the
humor and creativity in normal things, we are going to show you how to
exaggerate and distort a person or image in 8 simple steps to create a caricature.
Step 1: Choose a subject-You can turn anyone into a
caricature: a friend, family member, celebrity, or even your pet.
Step 2: Get your pencils and drawing equipment-Make sure everything is sharpened
and that you have some erasers on hand. The types of pencils you use are
going to impact your drawing’s line quality. The line quality of
caricature drawings is very important. Make sure you have your lines vary
as much as possible in your picture. Flat lines are going to be boring,
so make sure that your lines are thicker and harder in certain places.
For
instance, they should be harder: under the nose, mouth, chin, eyes, and all of
the outer lines of the drawing. Softer lines should be applied to places
in the drawing where there is detail, such as on wrinkles or other delicate facial
features or structures. It can help to vary the thickness of the individual
lines on your drawing and to keep them smooth and confident.
For
instance, if the lines on your drawing vary in weight from thick to then, this
helps add life to your drawing and will keep it from appearing lifeless and
boring. It is important that you incorporate these drawing techniques
to add a dynamic look to your caricature.
Step 3: Body-A caricature is meant to be an exaggeration. Start by
drawing a small body. On the body, draw an outfit of what you think the
person you are drawing would wear doing one of their favorite hobbies.
For example, the person might be like to hike in their spare time or do
ballet. In which case, you would draw them wearing hiking equipment or
with a tutu and ballet flats on.
Step 4: Head-This is where things can start getting funny. For the
head, you will need to draw a big and oversized head while making sure that you
exaggerate the shape of the person’s head. For instance, if your subject
has a wide forehead, then you are going to want to draw their forehead much
wider than normal. If they have a big nose, then exaggerate the nose on
their face. This is going to make the person look more comical than ever.
Step 5: Hair-It’s time to stick some hair on your subject’s head.
If your person has very curly hair, then make sure you draw their hair 10 times
curlier than it would normally look. Another example is if they have long
hair, draw their hair reaching all the way down to their toes to exaggerate the
length.
Step 6: Eyes-You will need to exaggerate certain qualities of the
person’s eyes as well. Draw their eyes using as vibrant colors as you can
and accentuate the person’s eye features. For instance, if your subject
has long eyelashes, draw the eyelashes particularly long and huge.
Step 7: Nose-As we mentioned before, you are going to want to exaggerate the
person’s nose regardless of what shape it is in. The shape will be pretty
straightforward. Most people either have a: big, small, straight, or
lumpy nose. If the person has large nostrils, do not be afraid to
exaggerate those as well.
Step 8: Mouth-
When starting to draw your subject’s
mouth, notice how far the mouth is from the person’s nose. The mouth of
your caricature should start with the person’s lips. The lips should be
plump, thin, or straight, and their shape will help you determine how you want
to exaggerate them.
For
the teeth, if the person has very straight teeth, make sure that you
over-exaggerate the straightness. If they have big teeth, on the other
hand, give them buck teeth or a noticeable overbite. Your caricature drawing is
now complete. Show your subject their portrait or give it to them as a
surprise gift.
Tips for Drawing Caricatures-Once you have chosen the subject
that you want to draw, find at least 5 to 8 pictures of your subject.
This is important because it will make it easier for you to develop two things
that are important to your picture: exaggeration and likeness. Various
pictures will help you study your subject from different angles and in
different lighting conditions. Study your subject’s features. There are going
to be elements of their appearance or face that are not “normal”.
This
will help you decide how you are going to make your subject look more unique so
that you can deviate away from what is considered the “ideal face”. A
caricaturist is supposed to have good and keen perception to be able to look at
a subject and know what parts of them should be exaggerated. Look for 2 or 3
features that you can use to deviate from their normal size or
proportion. Keep in mind that your deviates can be done with size, shape,
or both. If it helps, try to think of some famous people or actors or
actresses. Pick out their facial features that you would want to
exaggerate and think about how you would go about doing that.
Remember
to pay attention to the eyes of your caricature. You do not want to
exaggerate your subject’s eyes in such a way that it makes them look
unreal. A caricature is supposed to look realistic and
humorous at the same time. Play around
with creating caricatures in random places. For instance, when you are
walking down the street or in line at the grocery store, attempt to see people
as their caricatures
“A lot of people think that caricature is about picking out someone’s worst feature and exaggerating it as far as you can. That’s wrong. Caricature is finding the truth.” (Ben Austen)[i]
[i] Sources used:
·
“Caricature Art” by visual-arts-cork.com
·
“Drawing
Caricatures: How to Create A Caricature in 8 Steps” by Florence Ng
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