Art and Design · Year 2 · Lines, Marks, and Making · Autumn Term

Capturing Emotion in Portraits (Self-Portraits)

Exploring how different facial expressions and simple lines can convey various emotions in self-portraits and portraits of peers.

• National Curriculum Attainment Targets
• KS1: Art and Design - Drawing and Portraits

About This Topic

Expressive Portraits introduces students to the human face as a site of emotion and character. By studying the work of Lucian Freud, Year 2 pupils explore how artists use thick paint, unusual colors, and bold lines to tell a story about the sitter. This aligns with the National Curriculum's aim for pupils to learn about the work of a range of artists, describing the differences and similarities between different practices and disciplines, and making links to their own work.

This topic moves beyond 'drawing a smiley face' to investigating the anatomy of expression. Students learn how the tilt of an eyebrow or the set of a jaw communicates a mood. This topic is particularly effective when students can use role play to physically 'embody' the emotions they are trying to draw, helping them feel the tension in their own faces before putting pencil to paper.

Key Questions

1. How can you show if someone is happy or sad just by drawing their mouth and eyebrows?
2. What colours would you use to show a happy feeling? What about a sad or worried feeling?
3. Draw a self-portrait that shows how you are feeling today.

Learning Objectives

• Identify key facial features (mouth, eyebrows, eyes) that communicate specific emotions in a portrait.
• Compare how different line weights and shapes can represent emotions like happiness, sadness, or worry.
• Create a self-portrait that visually communicates a chosen emotion through deliberate use of facial features and color.
• Analyze how color choices can enhance or alter the emotional impact of a portrait.

Before You Start

Basic Drawing Skills: Lines and Shapes

Why: Students need to be comfortable making different types of marks and drawing basic shapes before they can focus on expressive features.

Identifying Primary and Secondary Colors

Why: Understanding basic color mixing is helpful for exploring how colors can represent feelings.

Key Vocabulary

Expression	The way a person's face looks to show their feelings or thoughts. This can be shown through the eyes, mouth, and eyebrows.
Line Weight	How thick or thin a line is. Thicker lines might show strong feelings, while thinner lines might show gentler ones.
Facial Feature	A specific part of the face, such as an eye, eyebrow, nose, or mouth, that helps show emotion.
Hue	The pure color itself, like red, blue, or yellow. Different hues can make us feel different emotions.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

Portraits must look exactly like a photograph.

What to Teach Instead

Many children get frustrated if their drawing isn't 'perfect'. Studying Freud helps them understand that capturing a feeling or a 'vibe' is often more important in art than photographic realism.

Common Misconception

Eyes are at the very top of the head.

What to Teach Instead

This is a classic developmental drawing stage. Using a 'hands-on' measurement activity (feeling where their eyes are in relation to the top of their head) helps them realize eyes are actually in the middle of the face.

Active Learning Ideas

Role Play: The Emotion Mirror

In pairs, one student acts as the 'sitter' and pulls an emotion card (e.g., surprised, grumpy). The other student is the 'artist' who must describe the physical changes in their partner's face (e.g., 'your eyes are wide') before sketching the key lines.

20 min·Pairs

Gallery Walk: Freud's Faces

Display several portraits by Lucian Freud. Students move around with sticky notes, writing one 'feeling' word for each portrait. They then look for patterns: which colors or types of lines did the artist use to show 'sadness' or 'thoughtfulness'?

25 min·Small Groups

Think-Pair-Share: The Color of Mood

Show a portrait that uses 'unnatural' colors (like green or purple in the skin). Students discuss with a partner why the artist might have chosen those colors instead of realistic ones, then share their theories with the class.

15 min·Pairs

Real-World Connections

• Animators use their understanding of facial expressions to bring characters to life in films like 'Inside Out', making sure each character's emotions are clear to the audience.
• Actors practice making different faces in a mirror to understand how to convey a character's feelings without speaking, a skill vital for stage and screen performances.
• Cartoonists draw exaggerated facial expressions to create humor or emphasize a point in comic strips found in newspapers and online.

Assessment Ideas

Quick Check

Show students three simple drawings of mouths and eyebrows. Ask them to point to the drawing that looks happiest and the one that looks saddest, explaining their choices. 'Which drawing shows happiness? How do you know?'

Exit Ticket

Give students a small piece of paper. Ask them to draw just an eyebrow and a mouth to show they are feeling surprised. Then, ask them to write one word describing the emotion they drew.

Discussion Prompt

Display two simple portraits of the same person, one using warm colors and one using cool colors. Ask: 'How does the color change how you feel about the person in the picture? Which colors make you think of happy feelings? Which colors make you think of sad feelings?'

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Lucian Freud's work too complex for Year 2?

While his themes can be adult, his technique is perfect for KS1. His use of thick, 'impasto' marks and visible brushstrokes is very accessible for children who are learning that art doesn't have to be smooth or neat.

How can active learning help students understand expressive portraits?

Active learning techniques like 'The Emotion Mirror' bridge the gap between seeing and doing. By physically mimicking an expression, students become aware of the muscles and lines involved in emotion. This physical 'muscle memory' then guides their drawing, making their portraits more dynamic and less like static icons. It turns a passive observation into a physical experience.

What if a child is uncomfortable drawing themselves?

Focus on 'character' portraits. Let them draw a fictional character or a partner. Using mirrors is helpful, but some children prefer the distance of drawing someone else first.

How do I teach skin tones without a 'flesh' colored crayon?

This is a great opportunity for color mixing. Teach students to mix brown, white, yellow, and red to find a range of tones that reflect the diversity of the classroom and the global context of art.