Painting skin and hair in human figures

by Tissa Hewavitarane

One of the many problems the portrait painter has to face is dealing with what are virtually two opposites in term of texture. The bark of a tree or the fur of an animal is a relatively uniform texture, but human skin is entirely different from human hair, giving the artist the task of finding a technique that can equally express both.

If you were to use a meticulous dry-brush watercolour technique for the hair and a fluid wet-in-wet for the face, the effect would be bizarre and unpleasing, though each of these techniques would be perfectly appropriate in the context of a single texture.

Skin

Of all the texture discussed, the skin is the most subtle and elusive, and painting it so that it looks alive is one of the greatest of all challenges to the painter's skills. The skin is not a homogeneous and opaque substance. It is reflective and to some extent translucent affected not only by what is around it even the weather - but also by the bone, blood and muscle beneath.

The most dramatic changes in the texture of skin are wrought by time; the skin of a baby or young child is soft and "peachy", while that of an old person, especially one who has spent a lifetime working out of doors, can often resemble leather or hide.

But this is not all. The texture also varies according to the part of the body. In an adult, hands, faces, constantly exposed to the air, are nearly always rougher than the torso, covered by its protective layer of clothing for most of the tome. This is something which those who paint and draw the female figure must often have noticed.

The skin stretched tightly over a bone, such as the nose or forehead is smoother and more reflective than that with a substantial layer. Of flesh and fat below. These are just some of the differences you can readily observer in any one person.

The ever-changing appearance of the skin has fascinated painters for hundreds of years. For Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) unusual in his day for working only from live models, the differences between people in terms of facial expression and skin colour and texture were of paramount importance.

Colours and highlights

Even when you are drawing rather than painting, you need to be aware of the colours of flesh, because colour can provide important clues about the texture. An even more important clue, however, is the quality of the highlights in describing texture, and the principle is exactly the same for the skin, though the effects are rather more subtle.

On oily skins the highlights will usually be brighter than on drier or dustier skins where it will be more diffused. When painting, lookout for these high points of light as they are extremely important indications of form as well as texture.

There is such a range of textures and styles seen on the human head that it is impossible to generalise about them, but there are some points to bear in mind when you are drawing or painting.

The way the hair flows and falls into a series of gentle waves was a source of particular fascination.

All hair stylists know that thick, heavy hair holds its shape better than thin wispy hair, and the more shape it has the easier it is to paint. You can simplify the forms, using long sweeping brush strokes that follow the flow of the hair.

The final quality to look out for is the sheen of the hair. For the painter this is the most important characteristic of all, the highlight giving the vital textural clues. Dark oily hair will have very pronounced highlights. Thick, dry and diffused hair and thin dry or frizzy hair almost have no recognisable highlight.

Media and methods

The pencil is a sympathetic medium for drawing the skin and hair because of its ability both to capture the softest nuance of tone and to describe fine lines and rhythms. For soft skins, such as those of young children, the pencil is best used. An effective method of drawing fine strands of hair is to use a technique of impressing thin lines into the paper with a thin nib pen.

Watercolour

Although many successful portraits and figure paintings are done in watercolour, it is not the easiest medium to handle for a subject that is difficult in any case, and beginners in watercolour would be well advised to practise before embarking on a human subject.

It demands a clear and direct approach particularly when it comes to rendering the subtle textures of skin. The translucent quality of the young skin can often be conveyed by painting wet-on-wet technique.

The only way to master the subject skilfully is through practice. I have painted a dressed figure as can be noticed, the pose involves no difficulty, but pay attention to the initial structure and the light areas.