Tutorial: Draw an animal face with basiceagles

Ready to unleash some wild emotion?

Animals might not show feelings the same way we do, but with a few tricks, you can bring them vividly to life and make every expression jump off the page (or screen!).

In this tutorial, @basiceagles walks you through easy, fun techniques to give your animals expressions full of personality and attitude.

Follow along, pick up some new skills, and snag a feisty new badge for completing the tutorial!

STEP-BY-STEP TUTORIAL

Build the face

Step 1

Sketch a rough circle and add horizontal and vertical guidelines to set the direction of your animal’s gaze.

Step 2

Block in the head with simple shapes for the face and ears.

Step 3

Place the eyes and mouth.

Step 4

Refine with fur, small details, and your final polish.

Want to give your character more personality? Add facial expressions to make it pop!

🐾 TIP 1: Let the eyes shine

The eyes do most of the emotional work in animal art. Even small tweaks to eyelid shapes can completely change the mood. Experiment to see how each look shifts the expression.

🐾 Tip 2: Play with shapes and brows

Combine eyelid changes with subtle shape adjustments around the eyes. Keep it playful! You can even suggest eyebrows using little circular forms to push expressions further.

🐾  Tip 3: Make the mouth matter

The mouth can make or break a facial expression, in the best way! Study real animal references to see how expressions form naturally. This will make your art feel alive and authentic.

Go wild. Let your creatures come alive with untamed emotion!

How to earn your badge

1. Create your expressive animal using this tutorial. 

2. When it’s ready, upload your artwork as a deviation.

3. Before clicking Submit, add the tag #WildExpressions under Tags, like so:

❣️ All done? Share your wild creation with the community in the comments below!

💬 Q+A with basiceagles

Got questions about this tutorial or your critters’ expressions? Ask away right here by April 16th at 9AM PST.

@basiceagles will pop in to answer ‘em all, so keep your eyes peeled!