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How to Draw the Portrait in Conte The visual language of drawing has evolved tremen- dously over the past few centuries. An almost magi- cal trick happens within our cerebrum when we view a flat surface on which marks have been inscribed. Look- ing at a portrait drawing – particularly a master drawing of exquisite lines and tones – we immediately see past the markings of chalk and engage in a visual and emotional dialogue. The more masterful the drawing the more we engage it.

This, too, is also the brutal reality of portrait drawing. If the threshhold of plausibility, namely, does the drawing read accurately, is not met then our work is readily dismissed. Additionally the spirit of a drawing, it’s emotional pull, is critically important. I am thinking of the portrait drawings of van Gogh when I say this. Con- versely, a technically accurate rendering alone will not make a drawing a ‘success’. The saccherine works Peter Paul Rubens, Isabella Brant, of William-Adolphe Bougeureau (1825-1905) come to A Portrait Drawing, 1621 mind.

In the late 19th Century Bougeureau was considered the greatest painter of his time – his paintings commanded astounding prices and he was a much sought after guest at high society galas while up on the hill in Montmartre artists such as van Gogh and Modigliani huddled over cold cups of coffee for their sustenance.

Juxtaposed to van Gogh’s Self-Portrait Bouguereau’s Drawing of a Woman is tepid and unengaging. I have endeavoured to keep the playing field level here and selected these two sketches as accurate representatives of each artists’ drawing mien.

Van Gogh is still often described as a deranged genius; the starving artist who cut off his ear in a rage and then presented it as a gift to a local prostitute. The reality, however, is that despite his ill- ness van Gogh’s draughtsmanship demonstrates a high level of pictorial precision and control. He began his career as a self-taught artist but soon realized that he required training. He enrolled at the Koninklijke Academie (Royal Academy) in Antwerp where he discovered and studied the works of Millet and Rubens.

Rubens, in particular, had an immense effect on van Gogh who earnestly plunged into his studies by copying the paintings and drawings of Rubens. Copying master works is the surest and most efficient method of learning how to draw. Having an intimate knowledge of a master’s working method and visual language strengthens and deepens both the technical and emotional resonance of your own work.

© 1998-2013. All rights reserved. The drawing pictured here of Ruben’s portrait of his first wife Isabella Brant (1591-1626) is drawn in red, black and white chalk on a pale brown washed clay- coated paper.

Rubens brought out the warm flesh tones of the face and ears with a red chalk and heightened the darks with black. The highlights are delicately stroked in with white.

Earlier in this lesson I spoke of drawing as a visual language – in many instances within this drawing Rubens spoke with what we might consider as Eliza- bethan English. The treatment of the hair, for exam- ple, is much different than how artists today would render hair.

Most beginning artists treat hair as individual strands; today we block in the major locks of hair and sug- gest a few stray hairs. In Ruben’s time hair was sug- gested with line. This of course does not detract from Rubens but merely illustrates that the language of drawing has changed.

The treatment of Isabella’s eye is radically different than how we would approach drawing an eye today. On close examination the way Ruben’s has placed the pupil within the upper part of the iris is both surprising and curious. Ridiculous even. But genius is often expressed sublimely in the ridiculous.

For almost three hundred years portraits were drawn with the pupil placed high in the iris. This, too, was an understood syntax of drawing.

The pupil is rendered not as a circle but almost as a pentagram. Look closely at how he has broken both the pupil and iris into straight architectonic lines.

© 1998-2013. All rights reserved. The heavy cross-hatching across the neck and in the temple is also something that is not done today. On a subtler note Rubens has quite often cross-hatched with the form rather than across it – artists are now taught to cross-hatch across from. Nonetheless, there is no denying that this is a powerful and exquisite drawing. The Portrait of Isabella Brant ranks amongst the finest drawings in Western Civilization.

As a teacher Rubens was a staunch believer in the benefits of copying master works. Throughout his career Rubens – the greatest painter of his time! – continuously copied the works of Titian and drew from classical Greek sculpture. He well understood that drawing is a language whose expression is strengthened by studying his predecessors.

The invention of the photograph (derived from the Greek words photos (“light”) and graphein (“to draw”) in the early 19th Century and its immediate application to portraiture radically changed the language of realist drawing. The photographic image was considered the ‘truthful’ representation and artists soon found themselves competing with this new medium. The syntax of realist drawing soon fused with the language of the photograph – perception influences, even dictates, language. The problem, however, is that photographs present a distorted image whether purposefully (i.e., in advertising, particularly the cosmetic and fashion industries) or by less than skillful handling of the camera. The camera flattens form. This is one of several culprits of why drawings copied, rather than interpreted, from a photograph read as flat and lifeless. Learn to Draw Like a Pro I mean really learn how to draw. And not just how to draw a tree, a face, etc. but learn how to draw anything.

Drawing, at base, is about accurately ascribing shape. It takes on average about a month to acquire this all important skill. Yet most beginners never do and find themselves perpetually stuck. I discuss this at length in my March Black- board article: The Straight Dope About an Art Education.

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Click here for all the info on my Beginning to Draw Workshop Rubens’s Portrait of Isabella Brant measures 15 inches by 11.6 inches (38.1 cm X 29.4 cm). Rubens drew Isabella’s portrait life-sized. That is to say her head from chin to crown is a little over 9 inches (23 cm). Rubens employed red, black and white chalk on a clay-coated paper that was lightly brushed over and subtly streaked with what looks to be Raw Umber (the original is in the British Museum). My assumption is that a small amount, just a couple of drops, of egg yolk was mixed into the Raw Umber to give it some translucency and to bind it solidly to the paper.

The red chalk Rubens used was likely compressed hematite. It was a predecessor to sanguine conté which is what I use. The black chalk was likely compressed from ground-up chalk or charcoal with a binder. The white was likely compressed lead carbonate.

Unfortunately no one can really say what Rubens’s working method was with certainty. Like all artists of his time his working methods were a closely held secret. After Rubens’s death, and as his apprentices died out, much valuable information was lost.

My copy of Isabella Brant’s head measures 7 inches (17.8 cm) from chin to crown, a little less than life-size. For my media I am using Sanguine Conté, ‘B’ Black Conté and ‘2B’ White Conté on a grey-yellow toned sheet of Fabriano Ingres drawing paper.

The purpose of copying is not to create a replica of the original but to seek an understanding of how Rubens constructed form and by closely examining his markings (visual language). This new found knowledge can then be applied to our yown work and often results in deeper, more evocative, expression.

© 1998-2013. All rights reserved. On a 10 x 14” (25.4 x 35.6 cm) sheet of toned drawing paper I sketched in the arabesque (the entire outside shape of the head and collar) with sharpened sanguine conté. Professional portrait practice is to work from the outside in. The untrained artist tends to work from the inside out, usually beginning with an eye and hoping for the best.

If you’re new to portrait drawing consider downloading my Mastering Portrait Drawing 1: the frontal pose workshop. This is where you learn the fundamentals of portrait drawing.

© 2013 Artacademy.com I quickly sketch in the facial features also with sanguine conté. Take note of the angle of the eyes from the medial to lateral canthus. Also Isabelle’s eyes are not symmetrical; they are distinctly different in shape.

For me, the truly endearing facet of Rubens’s drawing is his rendering of Isabella’s smile ...

Zygomaticus Major Levator Labii Superioris

Masseter

Nodes

Incivisus Labii Superioris

The anatomical precision of Rubens’s drawing is remarkable, it is more precise than the major- ity of anatomy books. The aphorism that it takes 43 muscles to frown and 17 to smile doesn’t add up: there are only 36 named muscles to facial expression. The fact is that it takes 12 muscles to smile and 11 to frown.

Illustrated here are the five major muscles that, grouped together, form the surface structure of Isabella’s remarkable smile: they are the Malaris (pink), Zygomaticus Major (green), Mas- seter (yellow), Levator Labii Superioris (violet) and Incivisus Labii Superioris (Upper)/Inferioris (Lower) (red). Also indicated are the Nodes of the mouth (blue).

© 2013 Artacademy.com NODES OF THE MOUTH: The nodal portion is fibrous tissue, situation inside the lateral corners of the mouth, that connects numerous muscles of the labial tractors (the muzzle). The Nodes function as moveable anchors and stabilizers affording a near inexhaustible range of expression.

MASSETER: The Masseter is a thick quadrilateral muscle lying obliquely on the jaw. This is the primary chewing muscle. It is seen mostly when eating, chewing or if the jaw is clenched in anger.

INCIVISUS LABII SUPERIORIS/INFERIORIS: The four, small narrow Incivisus muscles are for kiss- ing and whistling. The Incivisus Labii Superioris (Upper) and Inferioris (Lower) form a wingshaped sling inserting into the Node of the mouth. Using only the left or right side Incivisus muscles creates an expression known as ‘talking out of the side of your mouth’.

ZYGOMATICUS MAJOR: The Zygomaticus Major is a long and narrow muscle originating from the small bony bar of the zygomatic bone and inserts at the node of the mouth. It pulls the node of the mouth upwards and backwards causing the entire cheek to rise and bulge. The lower eyelid is also pushed upwards and smiling wrinkles appear under the eye and at its outer corner. The wings of the nose and the nostrils widen. The distance between the base of the nose and the upper lip is lessened. This, along with the Malaris, is the muscle of joy and laughter.

LEVATOR LABII SUPERIORIS: The Levator Labii Superioris is a wide, quadrilateral muscle layer that thins at it descends into the deep tissues of the upper lip right up and under the vermilion border. It raises the center of each half of the upper lip expressing a sneer. This is the ‘Elvis Presley’ muscle. When both Levators are employed an expression of disgust and contempt are displayed. So, too, is extreme nauseau just prior to vomiting. The lower philtrum is folded into a horizontal crescent.

MASSETER: Extending from the temporal fossa to the middle portion of the nasolabial furrow, or smile line, is the second major ‘happiness’ muscle, the Malaris. Both the Zygomaticus Major and Malaris are used for smiling. However the Malaris alone can produce a smile, the Zygomaticus Major cannot. The Malaris raises and puffs out the cheek.

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And get FREE worldwide shipping! Click here for more information. The structures of the head are built up with Sanguine Conté using an additive/ subtractive process of cross-hatching, painterly stumping and simultaneous lifting out and spotting with a kneaded eraser. This is a process that cannot be learned by reading about it.

Rubens did not block in the hair with red crayon. Close observation of his drawing shows that he employed line to describe Isabella’s back-swept hair. Bear in mind that copying is not a slavish devotion to working method but a correspondence and understanding of drawing with a great master. © 2013 Artacademy.com The Portrait Drawing Mastery Studio

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Get all the details here! Applying black chalk onto red is a tricky business. There is little room neither for second guessing nor timid rendering. Using a very sharp ‘B’ black conté and a deli- cate touch I carved out the forms of the cheek with cross-hatching. Rubens’s used cross-hatching like a chisel to describe the pushed up Malaris and Zygomaticus Major muscles.

The eye is delicately chiseled with cross-hatching. If you have a soft touch the black conte can be softened, even rendered semi-translucent, by using a small stump and the more subtle passages brought to life with assured spotting with a kneaded eraser. © 2013 Artacademy.com For me the challenge was capturing Isabella’s expression. The dilemma, however, was that to merely copy the expression would be like trying to forge someone’s signature – it would result in the emotional flatness that all counterfeits exhibit.

My approach was somewhat like method acting. I envisioned myself as Rubens enjoying a wonderful day drawing amongst a happy family. Rubens was an incred- ibly busy artist. He was, at times, overwhelmed by the number of ongoing commis- sions in his workshop (‘factory’ is a more accurate description) yet in his private hours he drew and painted for the sheer love of it. Even if Rubens had never made a Gulden he would still have created art all of his life. It was the centre of his being. Something to consider in these difficult times when many people are giving up their art. © 2013 Artacademy.com Spending the time to build up the facial forms with sanguine conte paid dividends when it came to hatching, stumping and spotting with the black conte. You will also find that having a good knowledge of facial anatomy will carry you a good distance.

© 2013 Artacademy.com Use the white chalk (I used 2B white conte) sparingly. It is an enhancer of light and not a corrective medium. At this final juncture of the drawing there should be little need for correction but should you need to correct an angle use the sanguine conte instead of the black.

If you enjoyed and benefited from this sample portrait drawing lesson be sure to sign up for my Drawing EZine and continue your studies.