This video demonstrates the process of painting the mouth and lips in watercolor, created as part of my portrait workshop series. The focus is on understanding the structure of the mouth and simplifying the forms so they can be painted convincingly without overworking the details.

One of the most common mistakes artists make is thinking of the lips as flat shapes or outlining them too strongly. In reality, the mouth is a three-dimensional form that wraps around the cylindrical structure of the teeth and jaw. The subtle shifts in value and edge are what create the illusion of volume.

Artists should also pay close attention to the shadow shapes and the soft transition where the lips meet the surrounding skin. Often, it is the surrounding values—rather than the lips themselves—that define the form.