The real question should be: what is a likeness?
It isn't the proportion of the individual features as these can be distorted beyond recognition without losing the likeness. The likeness seems to rest on what I call "hooks". These are the unique, individual features that make us instantly recognisable to all who know us. These features can be exaggerated but must essentially remain as they are –– just louder; more in-your-face.
John Lennon, for example, had thick eyebrows, small eyes, a straight and rather sharply pointed nose with defined, narrow nostrills. He was slightly goofy which was more apparent when he laughed. The set of his mouth was contrived to conceal this and resulted in a range of facial expressions that were typically Lennon. This may not sound as though I am describing the good-looking chap he clearly was but this is the nature of caricature. Caricatures are never flattering. As a caricaturist, you should always ensure that your subject is either (a) a celebrity you are unlikely ever to meet face-to-face or (b) someone with a strong self-image and a weak right hook!
On this page, I'll show some examples of caricature in different styles. I confess, some of the subjects have aged somewhat since these were drawn but I'm far too fond of them to write them off simply because they're a little out of date. On the following pages, we'll look at the construction of some simple caricatures of people who are well enough known for these to be recognisable.
Stephen Fry is an excellent subject for caricature. He has the powerful jawline and physique of a rugby player and the nature of a poet. He is essentially a kindly looking man. There is something 'boyish' about him that he will probably retain well into old age (he is now in his fifth decade and still looks a bit like a student).As kindly as I'm sure he is by nature, he is also capable of cutting sarcasm and I rather suspect that his bent nose is more likely to be attributable to this despite the physical appearance of a rugby player. If I ever meet him, perhaps he'll tell me. Then again, perhaps I'll end up with a nose to match. Being a caricaturist can be a very hazardous occupation.
This drawing is of a very young Paul Newman (about the age he was when he first appeared in the film The Hustler). Here, I've kept the style to very simple pen strokes. The 'hooks' are the pale eyes and the full upper lip. Usually, the lower lip is fuller than the upper but, in a few people, the reverse is true. The nose, interestingly, is not like Paul Newman's at all but more like Marlon Brando's. However, drawing the nose correctly seemed to diminish the likeness and I had to try several nose 'styles' before this one which, though inaccurate, actually set the likeness. This chin is also important here although you'll see that I've afforded it little in the way of detail. Caricatures can be very detailed but, by no means do they have to be.
Michael Hestletine was always my favourite subject. Regardless of the man's political convictions, his departure from mainstream politics was a sad day for caricaturists. What part of this face isn't a hook? Well, OK: That ear. That ear could be anybody's. The rest is exclusively Michael Hestletine. Politicians are becoming younger and far more clean cut and I swear to God this is a deliberate attempt to confound political caricaturists! Ah well....We'll analyse the different styles I've used here later in this tutorial but, for the moment. Let's try some simple caricatures and get into the feel of identifying and utilising the hooks that can make even a crude drawing instantly recognisable. So get a pen or pencil and a sketchbook ready and move on to the first practical.
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