Summary of The Artist's Complete Guide to Facial Expression by Gary Faigin

Transform your drawings with Gary Faigin's insights on facial expressions, from anatomy to emotions, making art both fun and authentic!

So, you want to draw faces that don't look like potatoes? Well, grab your sketchpad and brace yourself, because The Artist's Complete Guide to Facial Expression by Gary Faigin is here to save you from your artistic calamities.

In this step-by-step guide, Faigin teaches you how to interpret and depict the most complex part of the human body: the face. Spoiler alert: your subjects have emotions, and if you want them to look like they actually have a pulse, then understanding facial expressions is a must! Faigin breaks down the intricate details of facial anatomy, which includes the skin, muscles, and bones that go into making a face expressive - or just plain weird if you mess it up (we've all been there).

He starts with a heavy dose of anatomy, explaining how the muscles work together to create expressions. Picture this: you want to illustrate surprise, but your character looks more like they've just bitten into a lemon. Faigin shows you how to avoid such artistic faux pas with diagrams that detail which muscles to activate. Yes, it's a lot like yoga for your face, but don't worry, no downward-facing dogs here.

Next, Faigin dives into the nitty-gritty of human emotions. He categorizes a plethora of expressions-joy, sadness, anger, disgust, and everything in between-because apparently, "grumpy face" isn't an accepted emotion in the art world. Each emotion gets a deep dive, complete with visual examples and tips on how to represent them authentically. Faigin's philosophy seems to be: "If the eyes are the windows to the soul, then the face is the entire building."

We also learn about the importance of caricature and exaggeration. Faigin encourages you to loosen up and have fun, reminding you that sometimes, the bigger the expression, the better! After all, realism is overrated when it comes to capturing the essence of what it means to be human - who doesn't want to depict a character with eyebrows that could double as airplane wings?

Throughout the book, Faigin provides valuable exercises meant to get your creative juices flowing. Yes, you're going to be drawing a lot of faces. Get comfy with your pencil and eraser, because practice makes perfect, my friends. He includes various studies of famous artworks to illustrate various styles and techniques used throughout art history, suggesting that even the greats had their "off" days!

In case you thought it was a straightforward manual, think again! Faigin throws in plenty of humorous anecdotes and cultural references, making his guide feel less like a dreary textbook and more like a chat with your favorite art teacher (you know, the one who actually knows how to teach, unlike that guy who was just in it for the free coffee).

So, in summary, grab The Artist's Complete Guide to Facial Expression, channel your inner Picasso, and prepare to transform your flat, potato-like sketches into vibrant portraits that scream (or whisper) emotions. Remember, every scream starts with a smile... or a grimace. or a confused squint. Who knew faces could be this complicated?

Maddie Page

Classics, bestsellers, and guilty pleasures-none are safe from my sarcastic recaps. I turn heavy reads into lighthearted summaries you can actually enjoy. Warning: may cause random outbursts of laughter while pretending to study literature.