ART GUIDE: Dos and Don'ts for Beginners - Part 3 - "12 most common mistakes in drawing Eyes" 👁

Hi everyone!

This is the third post of a series based on observations of my students' exercises on Domestika. 

✍🏼 My comments and observations usually apply to people who are just starting their adventure with drawing. Therefore, I refer to these tendencies as "mistakes". Not because there is only one way to do art. It's just worth knowing the rules first in order to be able to break them effectively and consciously.

🍓 When I complete a series of these posts, I will create a summary to make everything easy to find and follow.

You can find previous guides here: Part 1, Part 2 📎 

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Today's post will be about drawing eyes, because many mistakes can be made just in this aspect:

👁 MISTAKE NO 1: DRAWING ONE, DETAILED EYE AND TRYING TO MATCH THE SECOND ONE TO IT

I think the most popular mistake among beginners is drawing one eye and finishing it with details, and then trying to draw another eye, which usually ends with asymmetry or hiding the eye under the hair 😊 It's probably because at first we all learn how to draw just one eye and this process might stuck as our habit. 

That's why, in portrait drawing it's very important to draw both eyes at the same time without getting too detailed before working on the other eye. Switching back and forth between them allows to see the shapes more clearly and get a more accurate symmetry.

👁 MISTAKE NO 2: ASYMMETRICAL EYES

Even when you draw both eyes at the same time, you might get lost in searching for symmetry. It isn't easy. Especially when you're learning to draw the face from the front. The most common mistake I see is the unequal distance from the nose (one eye is closer to the center line and the other is further away) and the different positions of the irises.

What helped me was to draw the guidelines and measure if the eyes are at the same level and in the same distance from the nose. In terms of the irises, focus on the shapes of the whites of the eyes - the triangles on the sides of the irises. 

NO 3: INCORRECT DISTANCE

Our faces differ from each other, but there are also many elements that, in averaged way, are common to all of us. Among other things, it is the distance between the eyes. On average, they're in one-eye-apart distance (the same as the width of the nose). 

Important! If you decide to exaggerate the eyes and draw them bigger, remember to also increase the distance between them 💡 

NO 4: CLOSED OUTLINES/ LACK OF FORM

The eyeball is a sphere. The iris is a concave disc with a hole (pupil) in the middle. Cornea is convex when you see it from the side. Eyelids have their thickness, they're soft and move on the eyeball like the lips. The eyebrow is a convex form above the eye that protects it from water and dust. The eye is build from so many planes! 

Beginning artists very often flatten the eye to a contour sketch with an even outline. When you learn to draw eyes, try to see them as three-dimensional, irregular form with volume and depth. 

-> Source: Anatomy for Sculptors 

If you find it too difficult, try to start by studying the spheres and other simple forms. This foundation is very important before moving on to more complex studies.

NO 5: DRAWING ONLY THE PART VISIBLE BETWEEN THE EYELIDS

A very common mistake is to draw only the space between the eyelashes. This way the eye becomes more flat. 

Remember about the form of the eye and the fact that the eyeball pushes the eyelids from beneath. Mark the edges of the eyelids - where they hide when the eye is open. To build a convincing form o an eye, draw also what is around it.

NO 6: DRAWING FRONTAL VIEW OF THE EYES WHEN THE HEAD IS VISIBLE FROM 3/4

This is a very common mistake, not only in case of absolute beginners. When we see a face in 3/4, only one of the eyes will be fully visible, the other can only be seen in 3/4.
1/4 of the eye hides behind the turning edge. 

Remember - when you see a face from a certain angle, the shape of the features also changes.

NO 7: IRREGULAR IRISES

I usually see this mistake in drawings of people who have an unsteady hand and draw irregular shapes in general. 

Remember that the iris and pupil are circular when viewed from the front, and oval when viewed from different angles. You can practice only the eyeballs with the ovals on their surface to memorize this principle. When drawing ovals, think about their symmetry:

NO 8: FULLY VISIBLE IRISES

In most cases, when you see someone's eyes, you will see them in relaxed expression, and so about 1/3 of the irises will be hidden under the eyelids. By drawing an entire circle of iris between the eyelids, you will make it too small. Also the expression will seem surprised or scared. 

Hide the top of the iris under the eyelid to draw much more relaxed look.

NO 9: TO BRIGHT IRISES OR WHITES OF THE EYES

I often see the whites of the eyes drawn completely white or even highlighted with white on toned paper. The irises are also often pale and separated from pupils with a high contrast. 

In fact, the whites usually won't be as bright. They're in the shadow from the eyelids, eyelashes, hair and other features around them. The irises are rarely bright enough not to add shading. Regardless of the color of the eye, I always add shadow under the line of the upper eyelid. This makes the expression more delicate and a bit mysterious.

NO 10: PUPIL PLACED AT THE CORNEA

A very important rule is the correct location of the hole in the iris, i.e. the pupil. 

It is visible especially from the profile:

NO 11: WOBBLY, THICK OR REGULARLY ARRANGED EYELASHES

The eyelashes should be thicker where they grow out of the eyelid, then a bit thinner and gradually fade away. It's important to draw them smooth and curved. Sometimes when you look at the eyelashes closely, you find that they have "invisible", very bright endings. Try to show it.

Another thing about eyelashes is that they are almost never arranged regularly - some "hug" each other and stick together from the moisture of the eye. This makes some of them thicker and more visible, and others delicate, thin and shorter. Try to draw it by looking at different references. You can even skip the eye and practice drawing  just the eyelashes on the arches of the eyelids.
Lashes are great for practicing the variety of lines and smoothness of strokes.

NO 12: TOO STRONG DETAILS

This rule applies to all features. Sometimes beginners draw too many details of the teeth, too strong lines on the lips, the veins in the eye or too many details of the iris. 

Simplifying in drawing is like seeing something from a distance or with squinted eyes. You wouldn't see each separate hair or each tooth. In most cases, you will also not see a vein in someone's eye when you talk to them. Such details can be added in the macro versions of hyper-realistic drawings. In a regular portrait, focus more on the general view of the eye and a few of the most important details like highlights or eyelashes. Unnecessary details can be distracting - distract from the gaze, expression or other important aspects of the portrait.

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That's all for today! let me know what you think and if maybe I forgot about something 😅

Hugs! 🤗

Gaby