In this article, we consider how to draw a lion in stages for children and adults who are trained in drawing. Leo is one of the standards of strength, courage, wisdom and justice. The image of this animal is very popular, ranging from cartoons and comics to the symbols of cities.
For example, according to the stories of Londoners and visitors, it is known that tourists tend to one attraction more than all the others, and this attraction is a sculptural group of four huge bronze lions, each weighing seven tons, at the foot of the Nelson's Column. They were designed by British artist and sculptor Edwin Landsir and installed in 1867.
Landsir's big cats are some of the most famous creations in Western art. But, of course, there are many others. Artists have depicted lions for millennia, and they have become such a common motive that they are often overlooked. In various industries and religions, this animal has a variety of features. In this article, we will cover the basic techniques for how to draw a lion's head with a pencil.
This picture is quite complicated, but working on these techniques will help you quickly fill your hand. This very detailed guide includes many steps that gradually and smoothly lead you to how to draw the head of a lion. If you intend to work using pencil and paper, please make the lines light for the initial steps of the drawing so that you can easily erase them later.
Draw the main shapes of the muzzle and head
Create a lion's head, as in the example above:
- Draw a straight vertical line through the middle of the drawing area, and then an intersecting horizontal line towards the upper end of the first line.
- Make a circle around the intersection to get the width and shape of the top of the head.
- Draw two circles to indicate the main shape and size of the ears.
- Draw two more circles to the lower end of the large circle (slightly overlapping the large) to indicate the face.
- Draw a half circle below the two circles for the lower jaw.
- Design a set of lines from the large circle to the semicircle of the lower jaw to build a muzzle.
- Draw two curves starting just below the horizontal line in the direction of the curves to create construction lines for the face.
- Draw the external shape of the mane in the form of two sets of curves.
Draw the features of the muzzle
- Draw the main shapes of the features of the face and erase some construction lines from the previous step so that your drawing does not become cluttered.
- Add cheekbones on the sides that extend from the area around the outside corners of the eyes and eventually bend inward to the nose.
- Then add more detail to the muzzle, starting with small curves around the nose and ending with large curves that go inward and then outward around the eyes.
- Draw the eyes right above the horizontal line (the inner corner should be below the line) from the first step.
- Draw the shape of the nose, as in the example above.
Emphasize the shape of the muzzle
Now specify the external construction lines of the muzzle from the first step to the more accurate shape of the lion's head.
Draw small details of the face
Now work on the small details of the face.
- Add the inner curves of the ears, pretty much following the outer curves.
- Draw the lower part of the mouth with the outer corners as if hanging down.
- Add the pupil, the reflection area and indicate the upper shaded area inside the eye. Also draw the curves of the upper and lower eyelids, as in the example above.
- Add a tiny “incision” towards the bottom of the nose, as in the example above.
Add a base fill (shadows)
Draw / shade the areas of the eyes, nose and mouth, as in the example above. You can also go to some of your lines in the sketch and shade them to complete the drawing.
Draw the inner hair of the mane and chin
You can pretty much point each small clump of fur with just one or two lines. Try to make each clump of a slightly different shape, size and length to make the fur look natural.
Draw a mane
Draw the rest of the lion's mane. Usually lumps of fur are smaller around the upper part and more around the lower part, where the fur is longer.
Add a mustache
Lions usually have many tiny black dots around the top of their mouths, from which a mustache grows. Draw a few rows before completing the rest.
Draw a mustache thicker to the base and thinner to their outer tips. It is also worth drawing them in different lengths, and do not forget about bends in different directions to make your drawing more natural.
When the mustache is finished, you should have a finished line drawing. If you want to add some flowers to it, but don’t know how to draw a lion’s head with paints, you can take some brown, yellow, orange and white flowers. The face will be slightly lighter, while the mane will be darker. Experiment with colors, your pencil drawing can serve you as a coloring.
Such a facial image can be very difficult to draw, but you can simplify it by first breaking it into simpler shapes, and then refining your drawing step by step to the finer details. Now you know how to draw a lion’s head . But the main thing that you need to develop is the firmness of the hand and the worked lines. There are many more different methods of drawing, the main thing is to remember that the key to your progress is hard work and patience.