How to Draw Ears for Your Manga Characters
How to Draw Ears for Your Manga Characters
','' ); } ?>Ears are many times an overlooked feature of the face. This is so much so that many professional manga artists have a general idea of how to draw ears, but really few really know how to draw them. And to be fair with them, most of the time this goes unnoticed by the readers. Yet, drawing ears is not complicated at all. You will discover that you can get something realistic with only 3 or 4 simple strokes.
Where shall I position the ear?
When looking a head from the side, the ear is positioned on the front of the back half of the skull, in an area located between the bottom of the nose and the eyebrows.
One fact to note about ears, is that they grow all along our life. They will be smaller proportionally to a baby’s head when compared to an old person’s head.
How to draw realistic ears?
The following picture shows you how to draw realistic looking ears if you intend to go towards a realistic manga style:
Basically, drawing the ear is not very complicated. You can draw a really good looking ear with about 5 strokes. The next steps are here to shape out the volumes of the ear’s elements.
Of course, not all ears look the same. The outer shape can be more angular, some parts can be more prominent. Do not hesitate to have a look at some pictures and to use these elements to shape out specific characteristics for your manga characters.
How to draw simplified ears?
How to draw ears like Osamu Tezuka
The simplest approach to drawing ear I found is the one used by Osamu Tezuka. It only consists of two strokes. The only thing to care about is to correctly orient the second stroke, representing the inner part of the ear.
My take at drawing simplified ears
Now, here is my proposed approach, which is a bit more complicated (4 strokes), but also closer to reality:
How famous artists draw ears?
How to draw ears like Akira Toriyama
Akira Toriyama is famous for his manga Dragon Ball, as well as Dr Slump and many more.
Here is his approach to drawing the ear:
Basically, I like the approach. It is good looking and quite close to a real ear.
How to draw ears like Eiichiro Oda
Like many artists, Eiichiro Oda has his own take at drawing the ear for his manga characters in One Piece.
How to draw ears like Kōhei Horikoshi
Kōhei Horikoshi is the author of the manga My Hero Academia.
Here is the method he uses to draw ears:
As you can see, Mr Horikoshi’s ear are more square/angular than a real ear is.
How to draw ears like Koyoharu Gotōge
Koyoharu Gotōge is the author of the manga Demon Slayer.
Here is his approach to drawing the ear:
Personally, I find it a bit strange and somehow not really close to reality. But again I didn’t notice it before I focused on this article 🙂
You might also be interested in the following articles:
I hope you liked this article. Note that I will soon complete this article with ear drawings from other angles.
Do not hesitate if you have comments!
Stef