Drawing the iconic face of Woody Woodpecker, the mischievous cartoon character created in 1940 by animators Walter Lantz and Ben Hardaway, can be a fun exercise for both beginning and experienced artists. Woody Woodpecker’s signature features like his long beak, wild eyes, and maniacal smile make him easily recognizable and a popular subject for cartoons and illustrations. By following some simple steps, you can learn how to draw a Woody Woodpecker face that captures his zany personality.
Pick Your Drawing Medium
You can draw Woody Woodpecker’s face using different types of drawing media. Some good options include:
- Pencil – Standard graphite pencils allow for sketching light guidelines and darker outlines. You can shade with the side of the pencil tip for smooth gradients.
- Colored pencils – These pencils add bright color to Woody’s red head feathers and yellow beak. Layering colored pencils can create texture and dimension.
- Markers – Both standard and alcohol-based markers quickly fill in large areas with solid colors. Some markers have chisel-shaped tips for varying line widths.
- Pen and ink – For crisp black lines outlining Woody’s features. Pens allow for consistent line weights.
- Digital media – Drawing Woody on a tablet or computer with a stylus offers flexibility in undoing mistakes and manipulating colors and effects.
The drawing medium you choose will depend on your personal preference and level of skill. Pencils and markers are a good choice for beginners, while pens and digital tools allow for more precision. Select the medium you feel most comfortable using to ensure the smoothest drawing experience.
Make Light Guidelines
Start by lightly sketching in the basic contours and proportions of Woody Woodpecker’s face. Draw a circle or oval for his head shape, then add guideline lines for the placements of his eyes, beak, forehead, and chin. Sketch lightly at this stage since you will refine and darken key lines later. Allowing yourself to make minor mistakes in your initial guiding lines gives you freedom to adjust Woody’s features as needed.
When placing the facial features, keep in mind that Woody’s eyes should align at about the middle of his head, with his long, narrow beak extending from his forehead down past his chin area. His eyes are large, round, and spaced widely apart to give Woody his crazed look. Draw curved lines around the eyes to indicate his surrounding white feathers. The top of his head has a pointed crest shape.
Refine the Beak and Eyes
Once you have the rough guide lines mapped out, you can start refining the details of Woody Woodpecker’s distinct features. His yellow beak is very long and pointed. Use bold, curving lines to delineate the top and bottom edges of his beak, coming to a sharp point past his chin. Draw the nostrils as small holes positioned near the base of the beak.
When drawing Woody’s large eyes, make the irises small circles toward the inner corners. Fill in the pupils as black dots. Leave white space around the irises to make the eyes appear bulging and deranged. Draw his eyebrows as curved black lines above his eyes to add expression.
Add the Signature Features
Certain defining features make Woody Woodpecker instantly recognizable. Carefully draw these details to capture his iconic look:
- Red Head Feathers – Cover the head area with red color or pencil strokes to represent Woody’s bright red feathers.
- White Face – Leave the area below the beak white. You can blend white charcoal or chalk over this area.
- Crazy Grin – Use a heavy black line to delineate Woody’s wide, toothy grin that stretches almost ear-to-ear.
- Green Scalp – Color the scalp area between the eyes green to match the color in Woody’s original design.
Take your time when adding these important details so they stand out clearly against the surrounding head feathers.
Add Shading and Texture
Shading is an important step for making your Woody Woodpecker drawing pop off the page. Since Woody has a rounded, three-dimensional head shape, you want to add appropriate shadows and highlights:
- Lightly shade the side planes of the beak that face away from the light source.
- Add darker pencil strokes behind the beak and around the eyes and forehead to make those areas recede.
- Shade the irises of the eyes lightly and leave white highlights to make them rounded and lifelike.
- Make the feathers around Woody’s face slightly darker to frame his features.
- Erase any unwanted guideline lines and blend shading for smooth gradients.
You can also add texture with techniques like cross-hatching on the beak, stippling in the red head feathers, and flicking the pencil tip for eyebrow hairs. These textures will give your Woody Woodpecker drawing an extra dimension of realism.
Ink the Outlines
Once you are satisfied with your shading, carefully trace over the main contours with dark, pen-like outlines. This will neaten your drawing and help define Woody’s features:
- Use long, smooth lines for the edges of the beak.
- Draw short, curved strokes for the eyebrows, nostril holes, and grin lines.
- Outline the eyes and pupils cleanly.
- Lightly erase any remaining sketch lines inside the outlined areas.
The inking stage finalizes your Woody Woodpecker face by making him look clean, polished, and true to the character.
Add Vibrant Color
Woody Woodpecker’s simplistic red, yellow, and white color scheme is highly recognizable. You can use markers, colored pencils, or digital painting tools to cleanly fill in his features:
- Use bright red to color the head feathers, leaving white areas uncolored.
- Fill the beak with solid yellow.
- Make the eyes blue and green to match Woody’s cartoon eyes.
- Leave white areas like the face, nostrils, and grin white.
- Optionally fill in the black pupils for emphasis.
Maintaining clean edges between the colors will give your coloring a polished, professional look. Varying your pencil pressure or marker stroke angles can add some helpful texture too.
Add Fun Details
Bring your Woody Woodpecker drawing to life with some dynamic details:
- Make the eyes look in different directions to give him a wild, unhinged appearance.
- Make strands of feather texture radiating off his head.
- Add a tie around his neck or a hat on his head as an accessory.
- Pose his body in an active position like tapping on a tree or mid-laugh.
- Surround him with cartoon props like a hammer or saw to play up his wacky hijinks.
Customize your drawing with any extra elements that capture Woody’s energetic, silly antics. Go as far over-the-top as you want!
Practice the Process
Drawing Woody Woodpecker well takes patience and practice. Follow these tips to improve your skills at rendering this classic cartoon character:
- Study different cartoonists’ interpretations of Woody to inspire your approach.
- Quickly sketch various facial expressions to get comfortable with his features.
- Use photo references of birds to help you draw realistic beak and feather textures.
- Trace over screenshots from the cartoons to see how the pros draw Woody.
- Experiment with different mediums and shading techniques to add interest.
- Draw Woody frequently, using your previous attempts for improvement.
With persistence, your Woody Woodpecker skills will reach the point where you can draw his face from memory. Let your creativity run wild and have fun cartooning!
Conclusion
Drawing Woody Woodpecker’s classic face is an enjoyable artistic challenge. Follow the basic steps of sketching guidelines, refining the features, adding shading, inking lines, and coloring. Aim to capture the essential elements like his long beak, wild eyes, red head feathers, and crazy grin. With practice and bold creative choices, you can develop your own unique way to draw this iconic cartoon woodpecker. The process will help strengthen your artistic skills and allow you to pay tribute to this classic animated character. Before you know it, you’ll be able to make your Woody Woodpecker drawings come to crazed life.