Free original lessons
Draw Six Emotions by Changing Brows, Eyes, and Mouth
Learn to draw happy, sad, angry, surprised, scared, and tired faces by varying brow angle, eye shape, and mouth curve on one fixed outline.
Free lesson
Four exercises
Worked answers
Object Drawing Lessons
A face becomes readable when three features change together: the brows, the eyes, and the mouth. This lesson uses one neutral face outline and a simple convention so you can practice six emotions without redrawing the whole head. The convention is a starting point, not a rule: valid alternatives are allowed when the three features still communicate the emotion clearly. Work with a pencil so you can adjust angles and curves, and keep your paper oriented the same way for every face so comparisons stay fair.
Practice materials: Printable downloads are not available for this lesson yet. Use the instructions and four exercises below.
The fixed outline and the three-variable convention
Draw or trace a neutral face outline: an oval, a horizontal midline for the eyes, a vertical center line, a small nose mark, and two ear marks. Keep this outline identical for all six faces. Only the brows, eyes, and mouth change.
Use this convention: brow angle is measured from the inner brow end to the outer brow end. A level brow is neutral; an inner end raised above the outer end is an upward angle; an inner end lowered below the outer end is a downward angle. Eye shape is described as open round, narrowed slit, or drooped with the upper lid lowered. Mouth curve is described as upward (corners above the center), level, or downward (corners below the center).
These labels are working descriptions, not clinical terms. Different artists draw brows and mouths differently, and that is acceptable. The check is whether a viewer can name the emotion from the three cues without a label.
- Draw the neutral outline once and make five copies or light tracings.
- Mark the brow line, eye line, and mouth line lightly on each copy.
- Choose one emotion and decide its brow angle, eye shape, and mouth curve before drawing.
- Draw the three features, then compare the face to the neutral outline to confirm only those features changed.
Cue combinations for six emotions
Happy: brows level or slightly upward at the outer ends, eyes open with a slight lower-lid lift, mouth corners upward. Sad: inner brow ends raised, upper lids drooped, mouth corners downward. Angry: inner brow ends lowered, eyes narrowed, mouth corners downward and pressed. Surprised: brows raised overall, eyes open round, mouth open in a small oval. Scared: inner brow ends raised and brows pulled together, eyes wide, mouth open and slightly stretched. Tired: brows level or slightly drooped at the outer ends, upper lids lowered, mouth level or slightly downward.
Notice that sad and scared both raise the inner brow ends. The difference is the eye shape and mouth: sad uses drooped lids and a downward mouth, while scared uses wide eyes and an open mouth. Angry and tired both can narrow the eyes, but angry lowers the inner brow ends and tired lowers the outer ends or keeps them level.
Draw each face at the same size. If one face looks much larger, the comparison becomes about size rather than expression.
- Draw happy first because its cues are easy to see.
- Draw surprised next and compare its round eyes with happy's open eyes.
- Draw angry and sad side by side to compare inner brow direction.
- Draw scared and tired last, checking that scared has wide eyes and tired has lowered lids.
Checking your faces without a label
Cover the emotion label, if you wrote one, and ask a partner to name the emotion from the drawing alone. If they hesitate, change one feature at a time and ask again. This isolates which cue is unclear.
Use a simple three-point check: brow angle, eye shape, mouth curve. Write the three words you intended next to the face, then compare the drawing to those words. A mismatch means the drawing, not the word, needs adjustment.
Keep a light pencil line for the neutral outline visible under each face. That reference makes it easier to see whether a brow moved up or down relative to neutral.
- Write the intended brow angle, eye shape, and mouth curve beside each face.
- Ask a viewer to name the emotion without seeing your note.
- If the answer is wrong, adjust only the feature that differs most from your note.
- Repeat until the viewer names the intended emotion or a close valid alternative.
Worked example
Using the fixed outline, draw a surprised face. State the brow angle, eye shape, and mouth curve you will use, then describe the result.
Worked answer
Brows raised overall above the neutral brow line; eyes open round with the pupil centered; mouth a small open oval. The face reads as surprised because all three features move away from neutral in the same direction: up and open.
Four practice exercises
Exercise 1
Draw a happy face on the fixed outline. Before drawing, write the brow angle, eye shape, and mouth curve you will use.
Show answer and check
Example: brows level, eyes open with a slight lower-lid lift, mouth corners upward. Other valid answers are allowed if the three cues read as happy.
Why: Happy faces usually combine a level or slightly raised brow with open eyes and an upward mouth. The three cues reinforce one another.
Check: Cover the label and ask a viewer to name the emotion. If they say happy or a close alternative such as pleased, the drawing passes.
Exercise 2
Draw an angry face and a tired face side by side on the fixed outline. Use different brow angles for each.
Show answer and check
Example: angry uses inner brow ends lowered and eyes narrowed with a downward pressed mouth; tired uses level or outer-end-drooped brows, lowered upper lids, and a level or slightly downward mouth.
Why: Both emotions can narrow the eyes, so the brow direction and mouth curve must separate them. Angry lowers the inner ends; tired lowers the outer ends or keeps them level.
Check: Ask a viewer to point to the angry face and the tired face without labels. If both are identified correctly, the cues are distinct enough.
Exercise 3
Draw a scared face. Then change only the mouth to a pressed downward line and describe how the emotion reads differently.
Show answer and check
Example: scared uses raised inner brows pulled together, wide eyes, and an open stretched mouth. Changing only the mouth to a pressed downward line makes the face read more angry or tense than scared.
Why: The open stretched mouth is a key scared cue. Removing it while keeping the brows and eyes creates a mixed signal, which shows how much the mouth contributes.
Check: Compare the two drawings with a partner. Ask which one reads as scared and which reads as tense or angry. The difference should be traceable to the mouth change alone.
Exercise 4
Draw a sad face and a surprised face. Write one sentence explaining which feature most clearly separates them.
Show answer and check
Example: sad uses raised inner brow ends, drooped upper lids, and a downward mouth; surprised uses brows raised overall, round open eyes, and a small open oval mouth. The eye shape most clearly separates them.
Why: Sad and surprised can both raise the inner brow ends, but sad droops the lids while surprised opens the eyes round. The mouth also differs: downward versus open oval.
Check: Ask a viewer to name both emotions without labels. If either is confused, check whether the eye shape matches the intended emotion.
Common mistakes
- Changing the face outline size or shape between emotions. Trace the same outline for every face and keep the paper orientation fixed.
- Drawing only the mouth and leaving brows and eyes neutral. Change all three features together; the mouth alone often reads as a slight smile or frown, not a full emotion.
- Making scared and surprised identical. Surprised uses brows raised overall and a small round mouth; scared pulls the inner brows together and stretches the mouth wider.
- Treating the convention as the only correct answer. Accept any drawing where a viewer can name the emotion from brow, eye, and mouth cues, even if the angles differ from the example.
Self-check rubric
- The same neutral outline is used for every face, with no change in size or orientation.
- Brow angle, eye shape, and mouth curve are each changed from neutral for every emotion.
- The three cues for each face are consistent with one another and with the intended emotion.
- A viewer can name the emotion or a close valid alternative without seeing a label.
- Valid alternatives are accepted when the three cues still communicate the emotion clearly.
Questions and answers
Do I need to draw a full head for each emotion?
No. The lesson uses one fixed outline repeated six times so you focus only on brows, eyes, and mouth.
What if my scared face looks angry?
Check the inner brow ends. Scared raises them; angry lowers them. Also check the mouth: scared is open and stretched, angry is pressed and downward.
Can I use different eye shapes?
Yes. The convention lists open round, narrowed slit, and drooped, but other shapes are valid if the emotion remains readable.
How do I know my drawing is good enough?
A viewer who does not see your label should name the intended emotion or a close valid alternative from the three cues.