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Learn side-profile mouth construction: set jaw alignment, project lips with measured steps, and check your drawing with a simple convention and rubric.
Side-profile mouths fail for two reasons: the jaw line is placed without a reference, and the lips are projected as if seen from the front. This lesson fixes both. You will establish a jaw alignment line first, then build lip projection from that line using a repeatable convention: the lip midline is the vertical midpoint between the upper lip crest and the lower lip base, and x-height means baseline to midline for lettering checks only. Because profile mouths vary by person, the rubric rewards consistent construction and plausible proportion rather than one universal shape. All measurements below are hypothetical examples; measure your own reference or drawing surface and label any chosen numbers as examples.
Practice materials: Printable downloads are not available for this lesson yet. Use the instructions and four exercises below.
Use the stated measurements and conventions for each exercise.
A profile mouth sits on the jaw, not floating on the face. Begin with a light vertical guide for the face plane and a horizontal jaw alignment line. The jaw alignment line passes through the ear-to-chin structure and gives you a stable reference for where the mouth corner sits. Place the mouth corner on the jaw alignment line, slightly behind the front of the chin by a small, consistent distance you choose and record.
Next, mark the upper lip crest and the lower lip base along the face plane. The vertical distance between these two marks is your lip height. The lip midline is the midpoint of that distance. This convention keeps projection decisions checkable: every lip point you add is described relative to the midline and the jaw alignment line.
Lip projection is the forward distance from the face plane to the lip surface. Choose a projection unit, such as one small grid square, and state it as a hypothetical example. Project the upper lip forward by one unit at the crest and the lower lip forward by one unit at its base, then connect these points to the mouth corner with gentle curves. The upper lip usually projects slightly less than the lower lip in many profiles, but valid alternatives exist; record your choice.
Keep the lip midline visible while projecting. If a projected point sits above the midline, it belongs to the upper lip; below, the lower lip. This prevents the common error of swapping lip volumes. Check symmetry of construction, not of shape: both lips should be built from the same corner and midline references.
With lips closed, the upper and lower lip surfaces should meet along a closure line that follows the jaw alignment. Draw a light closure line from the mouth corner forward, then adjust lip curves so they meet without gaps or overlaps. If the closure line drifts far from the jaw alignment, move the mouth corner or re-measure lip height rather than stretching the lips.
Finally, compare the chin front, mouth corner, and lip projection. The mouth corner should sit behind the chin front by a small consistent distance you chose. Use a simple arithmetic check: measure lip height, divide by two, and confirm the midline mark matches. Measure projection distances and confirm they equal your chosen unit. These checks are checkable and use consistent units.
A profile face has lip height 8 units. The mouth corner is 2 units behind the chin front. Project the upper lip crest forward by 1 unit and the lower lip base forward by 1 unit. Find the lip midline position and state one closure check.
Lip midline is at 4 units from the upper lip crest (8 divided by 2). Both projected points are 1 unit forward of the face plane. Closure check: the upper and lower lip surfaces meet along a closure line from the corner without gaps, and the corner remains 2 units behind the chin front.
Lip height is 10 units. Mark the lip midline and state its distance from the upper lip crest.
Midline is 5 units from the upper lip crest.
Why: The midline is the midpoint of lip height, so 10 divided by 2 equals 5.
Check: Measure lip height, divide by two, and confirm the midline mark matches.
The mouth corner is 3 units behind the chin front. The upper lip projects 1 unit and the lower lip projects 2 units. State the total forward span from corner to lower lip base.
The lower lip base is 2 units forward of the face plane; the corner is 3 units behind the chin front, so the corner-to-lower-lip span is 5 units.
Why: Add the corner offset and the lower lip projection: 3 plus 2 equals 5.
Check: Measure the corner offset and projection separately, then add and compare.
A drawing shows the upper lip projected 2 units and the lower lip projected 1 unit, with lip height 6 units. Identify one likely construction error and one fix.
Likely error: upper and lower lip volumes may be swapped or the midline side is misread. Fix: keep the midline visible and recheck each projected point against it.
Why: Lip height 6 gives a midline at 3 units; projection choices must be checked against that midline rather than assumed.
Check: Confirm midline at 3 units and verify each projected point is on the correct side.
The closure line drifts 2 units away from the jaw alignment. State a checkable adjustment using lip height 8 units.
Re-measure lip height as 8 units, confirm midline at 4 units, and move the mouth corner or lip curves so closure follows the jaw alignment without stretching lips.
Why: The midline check at 4 units gives a stable reference before adjusting closure.
Check: Measure lip height, divide by two, and confirm closure line distance from jaw alignment is reduced to your recorded tolerance.
No universal amount exists. Choose a projection unit, label it as a hypothetical example, and keep it consistent so your drawing is checkable.
X-height is baseline to midline, used only for lettering checks. It does not define lip height or jaw alignment.
Yes. The rubric rewards consistent construction and plausible proportion, not one universal mouth shape.
Confirm the mouth corner sits behind the chin front by your recorded distance and that the closure line follows the jaw alignment.