Capturing the Essence of a Complex Artist
You’ve seen the iconic images—the dreadlocks, the distinctive facial tattoos, the intense, expressive eyes. Trying to draw XXXTentacion’s face is about more than just replicating features; it’s an attempt to capture the raw emotion and unique persona of a figure who left a profound mark on music and culture. For many aspiring artists, his visage presents a fascinating challenge, blending soft youthful features with hard, inked symbolism.
Perhaps you’re a fan wanting to create a tribute piece, or an artist looking to practice portraiture with a subject full of character. You might be staring at a reference photo, unsure where to begin with those intricate tattoos or how to get the proportions of his face just right. This guide breaks down the process into clear, manageable steps, from the basic structure to the final details, so you can create a drawing that does justice to his likeness.
Understanding XXXTentacion’s Facial Structure
Before your pencil touches the paper, spend time observing. Jahseh Dwayne Ricardo Onfroy had a distinct face that evolved over his short life. For a drawing, focusing on his features around 2017-2018 is most common, when his look—with the notable facial tattoos—was widely recognized.
His face was oval-shaped, with a rounded jawline and a relatively narrow chin. His eyes were almond-shaped, often appearing heavy-lidded, with a noticeable downward slope at the outer corners that contributed to his melancholic or intense expressions. His nose was broad at the base, and his lips were full, often set in a neutral or slight frown. The hair, a massive crown of dreadlocks, framed his face and became a central compositional element.
Gathering Your Artistic Tools
You don’t need professional-grade supplies to start, but having the right basics helps.
– Drawing Paper: A medium-weight sketch paper is perfect for pencil work.
– Pencils: A range from H (hard, for light guidelines) to 2B or 4B (soft, for dark shading and tattoos).
– A Good Eraser: A kneaded eraser is excellent for lifting graphite without damaging the paper.
– Blending Stump or Tortillon: For smoothing shading, especially on skin tones.
– Fine Liners: Black ink pens (like 0.1, 0.3 mm) are crucial for crisply defining the tattoos later.
– Reference Photos: Collect 3-4 high-quality, clear photos from different angles. Pay attention to how the light falls on his face and how the tattoos curve over his bone structure.
Step-by-Step Drawing Process
Let’s build the portrait from the ground up. Remember, the initial stages are all about light, loose lines you can easily adjust.
Laying the Foundation with Basic Shapes
Start with a very light H pencil. Draw a simple oval for the main shape of the head. Lightly sketch a vertical line down the center of the oval (the midline) and a horizontal line across the middle. This horizontal line will roughly indicate where the eyes will sit.
Divide the lower half of the oval below the eye line into three more equal sections. The nose will typically start at the eye line and end at the second mark down. The lips will occupy the space from the second mark to the third, and the chin fills the remainder. Don’t press hard; these are just maps.
Blocking in the Features
Using your reference, begin to place the features. Draw the almond-shaped eyes along the initial horizontal guide, paying attention to their spacing (an eye’s width apart usually). Lightly indicate the brows, which were often thick and followed the curve of his eye sockets.
Block in the nose, noting its width at the nostrils. Sketch the basic shape of the lips, noting their fullness. At this stage, you’re drawing simple shapes—triangles, circles, and ovals—to represent each feature. Lightly outline the jawline, adjusting the initial oval to match his softer, rounded jaw.
Defining the Hair and Silhouette
This is a key step for capturing his likeness. Don’t draw individual dreadlocks yet. Instead, sketch the overall shape of his hair. It’s a large, textured mass that extends far beyond the skull oval. Draw the outer silhouette of the dreadlock bundle—it’s often uneven, with locks falling in front of his shoulders. Indicate the hairline on his forehead.
Mastering the Iconic Facial Tattoos
The tattoos are what make a drawing of XXXTentacion instantly recognizable. This requires patience and a shift in tools.
Mapping the Tattoo Placement
Before inking, use your light pencil to very carefully map the tattoos onto your drawn face. The most prominent ones include the “REVENGE” inked in a gothic font on his forehead, the three large X’s on his left eyebrow, the “BAD VIBES FOREVER” under his left eye, and the dagger or sword-like design on the right side of his head.
Observe how these designs follow the contours of his face. The “REVENGE” tattoo curves slightly with his forehead. The “BAD VIBES FOREVER” arcs under his eye socket. Use your reference photos constantly to get the lettering style and positioning accurate.
Inking with Precision
Switch to your finest black liner pen (e.g., 0.1 mm). With a steady hand, trace over your pencil guidelines for the tattoos. For blocky tattoos like the eyebrow X’s, you may want to use a slightly thicker pen (0.3 mm) to fill them in solidly.
Work slowly. If you’re nervous, practice the tattoo designs on a separate piece of paper first. Remember, it’s okay if it’s not perfect—hand-drawn tattoos should have some character. Once the ink is completely dry, gently erase any remaining pencil guidelines from the tattoo areas.
Shading and Bringing the Face to Life
Now, return to your pencils to create depth and dimension, making the face look three-dimensional rather than flat.
Developing Skin Tones and Volume
Identify the light source in your reference photo. The areas facing the light will be lightest; areas turned away will be in shadow. Common shadow areas on a face include the sides of the nose, under the brow bone, under the bottom lip, and under the chin.
Using a B or 2B pencil, start applying light, even layers of graphite to the shadowed areas. Use your blending stump to smooth the graphite, creating gradual transitions from light to dark. Build up the darkness slowly with multiple layers rather than pressing hard immediately. Pay special attention to the eye sockets, which were often deeply set, giving his eyes their intense look.
Rendering the Texture of Dreadlocks
This is where the hair goes from a silhouette to a textured mass. Within the hair shape you drew, start indicating individual dreadlocks. Don’t draw every single one—suggest them. Draw a few key locks in the foreground with more detail, using curved, parallel lines to show their cylindrical form.
Shade between the dreadlocks to make them stand out from each other. The areas where locks overlap will be darkest. Leave highlights along the top curves of some locks where the light would hit. This contrast between light and dark is what creates the texture.
Troubleshooting Common Drawing Challenges
Even with a guide, specific hurdles can arise. Here’s how to tackle them.
The Face Looks Flat or Out of Proportion
This almost always goes back to the initial sketch. If something feels off, hold your drawing up to a mirror. The reversed image will make proportion mistakes glaringly obvious. Go back to your light guidelines. Check the alignment of the eyes—are they level? Is the nose centered? Use the measurement trick: the distance from the hairline to the eyebrows, eyebrows to nose bottom, and nose bottom to chin should be roughly equal.
The Tattoos Look Stuck On, Not Part of the Skin
To make tattoos look integrated, their shading must match the face’s shading. A tattoo on a curved forehead should have subtle shading itself. After inking, use a very light pencil to add a tiny bit of shading to one side of the tattoo letters or designs, following the face’s light source. Also, ensure the skin tone shading goes right up to the edges of the tattoo ink.
The Expression Doesn’t Capture His Essence
XXXTentacion’s expression was rarely a full smile. Focus on the eyes and brow. Slightly lowering the inner corners of the brows and emphasizing the shadow under the lower lid can add intensity. A very slight downturn at the corners of the mouth can suggest solemnity. Study photos of his neutral expression—it was often a complex mix of sadness, defiance, and thoughtfulness.
Exploring Alternative Styles and Mediums
Once you’re comfortable with a realistic pencil sketch, consider experimenting. A stylized drawing can sometimes capture a subject’s spirit in a different, powerful way.
Try a bold, graphic style using only solid black ink, focusing on the high-contrast shapes of his hair, tattoos, and shadows. You could attempt a charcoal drawing for a grittier, more dramatic feel that suits his aesthetic. Digital art offers immense flexibility—you can draw on separate layers for the sketch, inks, and colors, making corrections easy.
If using color, his skin tone was a medium brown. Use a base layer and build up warmth with subtle reds and yellows in the cheeks and cool tones like blues or purples in the shadow areas. The tattoos, of course, remain stark black.
Your Path to a Meaningful Portrait
Drawing XXXTentacion’s face is a journey in observation and technique. Start with the simple shapes, respect the structure of the skull underneath, and layer on the details—the shading, the texture, and finally, the definitive tattoos. Each step builds upon the last.
The best practice is consistent practice. Draw him from different reference photos, in different lights. With each attempt, you’ll internalize the proportions and the unique placement of his markings more deeply. Your final drawing will be more than a copy of a photo; it will be an interpretation, a piece of art that reflects both the subject and you as the artist. Put on his music, study the references, and let your pencil translate that complex energy onto the page.
