Drawing human heads is the final boss of art fundamentals. But today, we’re beating it together.
This guide walks you through a simple method for building a head that actually looks human (not like a balloon animal). Then shows you how to tweak it to match your style.
So grab your favorite pencil brush, a paper texture, and let’s get into it.
Before you draw a single line, warm up. Spend five minutes scribbling circles of every size and shape.
Don’t overthink it. This isn’t about perfection. Think of it as push-ups for your wrist.
Then, sketch some egg shapes. Heads aren’t perfect spheres; they’re more like dented eggs with feelings. These loose, repetitive motions get your hand ready for the curves and angles you’ll need later.
In the video, I’m using brushes from the Pens & Pencils Collection and sketching on a Phantom Paper texture from our Paper Collection, because working on a pure white canvas feels like staring into the sun.
Even pros don’t draw from memory alone. Reference makes your work better, period. Look for photos on Pinterest, Instagram, or stock sites.
If you want more control, use a 3D model so you can spin the head around like it’s on a lazy Susan. And if you’re on a budget? Grab a mirror. It’s perfect for testing angles and expressions (just don’t make eye contact with yourself for too long, or you risk an existential crisis).
Tracing is fine when you’re learning proportions and placement. And don’t just draw “pretty” faces; the diversity of the human race is free character-design inspiration you shouldn’t skip.
Before the “real” drawing, do a quick gesture sketch of your subject.
Keep it loose and messy. The goal isn’t to make something pretty. It’s to shake off the rust and find the flow of the pose. These rough scribbles help you avoid freezing up when you start laying down your final lines.
Here’s where the magic happens. Start with a simple sphere. If you want to be fancy, use a shape tool for a perfect circle; otherwise, freehand it.
Next, imagine slicing off the sides of the sphere to create the flat planes where the ears will sit. From there, add a horizontal curve around the middle to set the tilt.
Curving up means the subject is looking up; curving down means they’re looking down. Once the sphere and planes are in place, start mapping your guides.
Add a brow line across the front, then a line below it for the nose, and another above for the hairline.
Drop the chin down below the sphere (roughly the same distance as the brow to the nose) so the face is divided into three equal sections: hairline to brow, brow to nose, and nose to chin.
Finally, draw a light center line to show the tilt and symmetry, then connect the jawline from the ear area to the chin.
With the structure in place, block in the major features. Drop two circles under the brow line to mark the eye sockets. Build the nose with a loose triangle that stretches from the nose line up toward the brow.
Sketch a simple line for the mouth halfway between the nose and the chin. Keep it rough, these guides are just a scaffold for the details to come.
Before you move on, check your proportions. Flip your canvas horizontally or vertically to get a fresh perspective. If you’re digital, don’t be afraid to use the liquify tool to nudge things into place. That’s not cheating; it’s problem-solving.
Once the structure feels solid, it’s time to make your head look like a person.
Start with hair. Think big, chunky shapes (not tiny strands). Hair has volume, so make sure it sits above the skull, not painted flat against it.
Then refine the features. Add eyelids to those floating circles to turn them into real eyes. Build out the nose using simple round shapes and shadows.
For mouths, study your reference. Some lips are fuller, some thinner. Adjust accordingly.
And when you draw ears, focus on shadow shapes rather than mapping every fold. Simplification is your friend.
Now you’re ready to stylize.
If you’re going for a comic-book look, simplify the lines and reduce the details.
Keep bold upper eyelids, streamline the lips, and strip the ears down to their essentials. The structure stays the same, but the vibe shifts and it becomes way easier to replicate consistently in your work.
Everything in the demo came from RetroSupply:
