Eye Spy…

You will need a pencil and a rubber for today’s doodle…

What do we know about eyes?

• They have 3 parts. These are the eyeball, the iris and the pupil.
• The eyeball is the white bit. It is round like a tennis ball but partly covered by eyelids.
• Eyelids act a bit like curtains on a window, and partly cover the eye.
• Everyone’s eyeball is the same tennis-ball shape, but the shape of the eyelid makes them different.
• There are around 170 different eye shapes

More about eyes

• The iris is circular. It is the coloured bit of your eye.
• The shape of the iris may be partly covered by the eyelid, just like curtains can cover a window when they are drawn.
• The pupil is the black bit of your eye.

Doodle it!

Draw a diagram (factual picture) of your eye on a bit of scrap paper and label the different parts. There are four parts to label:

1. The eyeball
2. The eyelids
3. The iris
4. The pupil

Use arrows so you know exactly where everything goes.

Express yourself!

We have already mentioned that the eye is really a tenis ball shape. The white eyeball is really a kind of blank canvas. It has a frame, the top and bottom eyelids. But we can position the iris almost  anywhere within that frame to get a different expression. Eyes are all about expression.

Remember:

Lots of expression does not always mean lots of detail. If you look carefully you can show expression with a simple, smooth line.

For Older Readers:

Look in a mirror and see the shape of your own eye. Hold a piece of blank paper over your forehead so it covers your eyebrows and really look at the shape of both your eyes together.

Fold a piece of new A4 paper in half. Try and draw the shape of your eye one half of the paper. On the top half of the paper draw the shape of the white bit of your eye you can see in the mirror. You can cover the top half of the paper with these doodles, until you get something you like. You might need to add the iris and pupil to see how lifelike your doodle is.

Number your eye whites. You can choose how many you want to do.

It doesn’t matter, as long as you are happy.

On the bottom half of the papercover your eyebrows with the paper again. Look at the crease of the eyelid and the shape it makes. It will probably look a bit like a half moon, or crescent moon above your eye.

Choose a numbered drawing from the top half of the paper that you like.

Look carefully at the drawing you have chosen.

Now you are going to copy the drawing you have chosen on to the bottom of the page, but add the half moon shape of your eyelid.

This will make the shape of your eye BIG, EXAGGERATED and CARTOON LIKE.

Rub out the line where your eyelashes would be in real life, we want to develop a nice smooth shape that is unique. It doesn’t matter if it is not very realistic.

You want a nice, smooth, exaggerated shape.

It does not matter at all if your cartoon eye is not perfect. It is much more important that it is meaningful and expressive.   

We have made sure your cartoon is meaningful by modelling the eye shape on your face.

We have made sure your cartoon is expressive by making your eye larger than usual.

For younger readers:

Younger readers just need a basic shape for their eye. Look at your eye in the mirror. It might look like;

• A big dot
• A side-ways comma “
• A round circle O O  
• A narrow slit – -
• A small circle o o
• A dash ~ ~
• A plus sign + +
• An owl shape () ()
• A kind of six, with the circle made black 66

You have to really like the type of eye you use as tomorrow you will be putting it on to your main drawing.

Try out lots of mini faces to see which type of eye you like best.

Don’t draw anything on yesterday’s drawing yet!

Talk about it!

Ask a friend which of your eyes looks most like you. If you are having trouble then make your shape simpler, or use the tips for younger readers.

All your cartoon people will share this type of eye. It is really important that you are pleased with it and like looking at it.  

Well Done!

Today’s doodle was difficult, but hopefully you are beginning to make art that is important to you. This is great as drawing is about your emotions as well as how good something looks on a page.

If you like your drawing then the chances are that someone else will like it too!