Most of us tend to laugh whenever we see a caricature of a personality plastered all over the dailies and on various sites all over the internet. We know how the artist exaggerated one or more person’s features to grab our attention and convey meaning. Sometimes, the subject would appreciate the artistry behind the art, but there are also times when they’d be pretty offended, especially if the artist made them look extremely funny. Well, that’s the essence of art – it’s pretty subjective, and it may divide the house from time to time on its interpretations. But, it does make people smile and appreciate the little things.
People might interchangeably use caricature and cartoon, and to be honest, the lines are pretty blurred when it comes to the definition. Both art forms use exaggerated or distorted features of a person, and both convey a deeper meaning. Cartoons, however, get drawn repeatedly and appear with dialogues to emphasize the story. They’re both used for their editorial value, and people tend to realize the gravity of the issue better when they see the illustrations.
If you’ve gone to fairs or conventions, you’d most probably have seen a caricature artist plying their wares. It seems what they’re doing is fun enough but also pretty challenging because they have to capture the person’s essence while still trying to be humorous. While applications are available to convert any image into a digital caricature, there’s still something different with a tangible caricature. We all know it takes a lot of time to master such a craft, which probably explains why we tend to put more value into it.
Let’s try to learn how to create our caricature. Remember, practice makes perfect, so don’t fret if you cannot make an ideal caricature yet.
Choose your subject
Anyone can be your subject. We’re pretty sure your parents and other family members wouldn’t mind being the subject of your illustration.
Prepare your materials
Make sure that you sharpen your pencils and have a variety of available points. You should also have enough paper to draw on and coloring materials to add the embellishments. Of course, you’ll need to find a comfortable position to work, too.
Decide which features you want emphasized
If your subjects don’t want to sit down for a session, you can always use photos to grasp how they appear. Look for a feature you would like to emphasize and highlight in your illustration. Make sure that you pay particular attention to the eyes because you don’t want them to look unrealistic. You’ll have to identify two to three features that you’ll distort to move away from the ideal face.
Work, work, work
Once you get the hang of drawing different subjects, you don’t just stop. Instead, you continue to work on your craft. Never let a day pass without sketching one or two faces on a pad. It’ll sharpen your skills and develop muscle memory.
Quirky, beautiful art
Remember to keep your caricatures light and humorous. Play around with colors and shading if you want, or consider using different perspectives. It’s supposed to be fun creating artwork, so go out and have fun creating caricatures in your free time.
Photo Attribution:
1st and featured image by https://pixabay.com/vectors/man-persons-guys-group-google-156786/
2nd image by https://pixabay.com/photos/plans-design-web-design-designer-1867745/
