Caricature artists draw cartoon-like portraits of people.
The artist will draw reference from the subject’s physical features and distort, warp and exaggerate them to create a personalised caricature that resembles real-life.
For example, if a person has slightly larger than average ears, their caricature may have drastically large and oversized ears.
The photograph below shows a caricature alongside the real-life person that it represents. Although the caricature is very different from the subject, there are also many identifiable features that create a resemblence.
Personalised caricature alongside subject
As you can see in this example, the caricature artist has focused on the beard and receding hairline of the person he or she is drawing. In the artist’s interpretation, the beard is the subject’s most identifiable feature, which is why they have exaggerated the beard in their drawing by making the chin, cheeks and length of the beard hair larger.
If you cover the lower half of the caricature’s face with your hand, you will observe that all the facial features in the top half are in proportion (more or less). Think about what you would expect for the lower half of the face if you hadn’t seen the whole picture. When you move your hand away, you will see just how over-exaggerated the lower half is.
Caricature artists can be found the world over and no two caricatures of the same person will be the same because each artist will have their own interpretation and put their own spin on their pictures.
You will often see caricature artists plying their trade at large events, markets and fayres and for a few quid you can have your own custom caricature drawn.
They can also be hired at very reasonable prices forspecial occasions such as birthdays, weddings and anniversaries, where they will mingle with the guests and supply their caricature-drawing services.
You can also purchase personalised caricatures online and the artists will draw a likeness based on a photograph you supply to them. These can make great unique gifts for family, friends and loved ones.
Click here to find out how to draw personalised caricatures like a caricature artist.
