Lesson video

Hello, my name is Mrs. Tipping, and I'm really looking forward to learning with you today all about photography and painting and looking at facial expressions in portraiture.

We're going to do lots of thinking, talking, and exploring together in this lesson.

So, shall we get started? Let's go.

By the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to identify and describe different facial expressions in portraits and their emotional impact.

Before we start, I would like to introduce you to some keywords.

We'll be using these keywords during the lesson, so it might be a good idea to write these words down.

The keywords we'll be using today are portrait, feature, realistic, exaggeration.

I'm going to say those again and I would like you to repeat them after me.

Portrait.

Feature.

Realistic.

Exaggeration.

Good job.

Now let's think in more detail about what these keywords mean.

Here are the definitions for each of our keywords.

A portrait is a painting, drawing, or photograph of a person with an emphasis on the face, personality, and attributes of the sitter.

A feature is a part of the face, like eyes, mouth, or nose.

Realistic is a representation of something that is accurate and true to life.

Exaggeration is a representation of something that is more extreme or dramatic than it is usually.

Pause the video here to make a note of the keywords, and when you're ready to continue, press play.

These are the learning cycles that we'll be working through together in today's lesson.

We're going to explore facial expressions in art and emotions and facial expressions.

In this first learning cycle, we're going to explore the facial expressions in art, so let's get started.

How can emotions be expressed in art? Hmm, that's an interesting question.

How can emotions be expressed in art? Well, a portrait is a representation of a person or group of people, often highlighting their personality, identity, or emotions.

Portraits can be painted, drawn, or photographed.

Take a look there at that street art portrait of artist Frida Kahlo.

Now, facial expressions are key to communicating a person's emotions, making a portrait more relatable and meaningful.

You can see in that image there that somebody is taking a look at a portrait painting in a gallery.

What facial expression is that portrait communicating? Hmm.

What do you think the emotion is being conveyed in these faces? So we have this image.

What emotion is being conveyed there? This one here, and this one there.

Three emotions there being conveyed by these faces.

Pause the video here and give yourself a moment to think.

What emotion do you think is being conveyed? And press play when you're ready to continue.

Well, there are key features of the face that help when identifying the facial expression and emotion being conveyed.

Looking at that first image, eyes and eyebrows, they show emotions like surprise, sadness, or anger.

In the second image, the mouth can show smiles, frowns, or neutral expressions to reveal feelings.

And in that third image, the relationships between features can also convey complex or mixed emotions.

Using this portrait, can you identify and describe with a partner what emotion is being conveyed, which facial features stand out, and how light, shadow, and colour help to express this emotion? So pause the video here and have a moment to discuss and describe with your partner these three questions, and press when you're ready to continue.

What did you think? What emotion is being conveyed in this portrait? What facial features stood out? And how do light, shadow, and colour help to express this emotion? Well, Izzy says that she thinks the portrait is expressing sadness, because their brow is furrowed, their eyes look like they are filled with tears, and their mouth is turning down.

Laura thinks there is no colour in the picture, which highlights their facial expression and makes it look more dramatic.

What did you think? Did you think the same ideas as Izzy and Laura? Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

What is a portrait? Is it a landscape painting, a type of abstract art, a picture of a person or group of people? Pause the video here and give yourself a moment to think about this question, and press play when you're ready to continue.

What did you think? If you said a portrait is a picture of a person or group of people, you're absolutely right.

Well done.

Now, artists can use several techniques to enhance the emotional impact of a portrait, and this includes light and shadow, colour, and composition.

So they can use these three different techniques to enhance the emotional impact of a portrait.

What is the effect of the use of light and shadow in this portrait? Pause the video here and take a moment to talk to your partner.

What is the effect of the use of light and shadow in this portrait? And press play when you're ready to continue.

Well, light and shadow can be used to add drama and depth in a portrait to emphasise facial expressions or certain features.

Bright light can highlight joy, while dim light may create a more serious mood.

So this image here has high contrast.

The portrait is revealing the eyes only, so it's quite dramatic, isn't it? So how does the use of colour influence the portrait's mood and emotion in these images here? So we have this first one and this second one.

What do you think? Pause the video here and have a quick discussion.

How does the colour influence the portrait's mood and emotion? And press play when you're ready to continue.

What did you think? Well, colours influence a portrait's mood and emotion.

Taking a look at the first one, the warm colours like red, orange, and yellow can suggest energy or joy.

Whereas in the second image, the cool colours like blues and greys can convey calmness or sadness.

Did you think that when you looked at those portraits? Looking at this third one here, we can also have bold, contrasting colours, which can heighten drama.

Can you see that in that third image there? Now, artists can also choose which areas to focus their images on through their choice of composition.

In a portrait, the composition can draw attention towards certain features, the head and shoulders, or the whole person.

An example of a portrait with a dynamic composition can be seen in Artemisia Gentileschi's "Self-Portrait" painted in 1638.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

We have two gaps here that we need to fill with words, something and something can be used to enhance the expression in a portrait.

Is it brands and logos, light and shadow, rulers and measurements? Pause the video here and take a moment to have a go at filling in those gaps, and press play when you're ready to continue.

What did you think? If you said light and shadow can be used to enhance the expression in a portrait, you're absolutely right.

Well done.

Now this brings us to our first learning task.

I'd like you to have a go at drawing the missing feature onto each facial expression to make the portrait appear in the first one more happy, in the second one more surprised, and in the third one more sad.

So pause the video here and give yourself enough time to draw the missing feature onto each facial expression to make the portrait appear more happy, more surprised, and more sad, and press play when you're ready to continue.

How did that go? Shall we take a look at an example? So you may have drawn a smiling mouth on the first one, raised eyebrows on the second one, and sad, downturned eyes on the third one to show that more happy, that more surprised, and that more sad facial expression.

Well done for completing that learning task.

This brings us to the second part of our lesson.

We're now going to explore emotions and facial expressions.

The key features for changing a facial expression are the eyes, eyebrows, and mouth.

However, not all facial expressions show clear emotions.

They may be subtle or mixed, which can make them difficult to identify accurately.

You can see a photograph there of a person with a subtle facial expression.

We're not really sure what she's feeling.

Artists may also alter the appearance of a person to make them appear realistic or exaggerated.

A realistic representation accurately reflects the person.

So you can see that here.

Exaggeration can highlight an emotion or emphasise a mood.

So you can see that on the other half of this portrait here.

A portrait painting by Leonardo da Vinci titled "Mona Lisa" is famous for the facial expression which uses the features of a slight smile and neutral eyes.

This realistic portrait creates a subtle expression and invites different interpretations.

Now, while a realistic portrait represents the person in an accurate way, an exaggerated portrait makes them seem more extreme or dramatic.

The facial expression in "The Scream" by Edvard Munch painted in 1893 is much more exaggerated and immediate, with a wide mouth and raised eyebrows.

This means the emotion of fear or anxiety becomes easier to identify.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

Which of these facial features is most important for showing emotion: eyebrows, hair, or chin? Pause the video here and give yourself a moment to answer that question, and press play when you're ready to continue.

What did you think? If you said that the eyebrows are the most important facial feature for showing emotion out of these three, you're absolutely right.

Well done.

Now, using a mirror can be helpful for creating portraits, as it helps artists see real facial expressions, it shows how light reflects on the face, and it helps to practise sketching the positions of each feature.

Let's have a go at practising drawing some of those facial features.

So using a mirror for reference, I'm gonna draw some eyebrows that express excitement and give myself a minute to do that.

So here's my go here.

Can you see how these eyebrows express excitement? I'd like you to have a go.

So use a mirror for reference.

Have a go at drawing eyebrows that express excitement, and you could take a look at mine as well whilst you're drawing.

Pause the video here and give yourself enough time to do that, and press play when you're ready to continue.

How did you get on? Well, Sam had a go and she said, "I tried to raise the eyebrows in the sketch to show excitement." Let's now have a look at a different facial feature.

I'm going to use a mirror for reference to draw a mouth that looks surprised.

So I've drawn one like this.

I'd like you to do the same.

So use a mirror for reference to draw a mouth that looks surprised, and give yourself a minute to do that.

Pause the video here, and when you're ready to continue, press play.

How did that go? Well, Jacob had a go and he said, in his sketch, he opened the mouth up really wide to express the emotion of surprise.

So it's a bit like my drawing there, isn't it? Did you do the same? And finally, let's have a go at using a mirror to draw eyes.

I want those eyes to look happy.

Hmm, so how am I gonna draw those? I might draw them a bit like this.

I'd like you to use a mirror now to draw eyes that look happy.

Give yourself a minute to do that.

Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to continue.

How was that? Well, Laura also had a go, and she said, "The eyes have wrinkles at the edges to try to look like they are smiling, and they're also narrower than usual." Is that how you drew your eyes also? Well done for practising those different drawings of facial features.

So let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

Why is using a mirror helpful when sketching facial features, expressions and emotions? It shows how light reflects on the face.

It helps artists see real facial expressions.

It adds colour to the sketch.

Pause the video here and give yourself a moment to discuss this question with your partner, and press play when you're ready to continue.

What did you think? If you said that it shows how light reflects on the face and it also helps artists see real facial expressions, you're absolutely right.

That's why using a mirror is helpful when sketching facial features, expressions, and emotions.

This brings us to our final learning task.

I'd like you to choose an emotion to portray, that could be happiness, anger, sadness, or surprise.

I'd like you to use a mirror or photograph to observe your own facial expression.

Then I'd like you to sketch a self-portrait of your face with the chosen emotion.

Now, consider which facial features to exaggerate or details to enhance the emotion in the portrait, and remember to sketch lightly so that you can correct your drawing if you want to.

Pause the video here and give yourself enough time to have a go at sketching that self-portrait using the ideas here, using a mirror to help you or a photograph, and consider those facial features that you're going to exaggerate or the details to enhance the emotion in that portrait.

And press play when you're ready to continue.

How did you get on? Shall we take a look at an example? So you might have drawn something like this.

In this example, the emotion of happiness was observed as a facial expression, then drawn with a smile and relaxed eyes.

So well done for completing that learning task.

Now, before we finish this lesson, let's summarise what we've learnt about investigating facial expressions in portraits.

Facial expressions are used in portrait art to convey emotions such as happiness, sadness, anger, and surprise.

Facial features like the eyes, eyebrows, and mouth can appear realistic or exaggerated to highlight certain emotions.

Light, shadow, colour, and composition can all be used to further emphasise the mood of a portrait artwork.

Thank you for joining me in this lesson today.

I hope to see you in the next one.

See you next time.