African Mask Lesson Step 3 - Designing the Nose
This step illustrates how to simplify and stylize the nose of your African mask design.
Draw one half of a stylized nose on the light colored paper.
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The nose should stretch from just above the eyes to roughly halfway between the eyes and the bottom of the sheet.
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Stylized and simplified features are used to help express abstract qualities like nobility, integrity, courage, fear and humour.
Cut out the nose shape and flip it over.
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Place it on the dark sheet and align it with the vertical edge of the light paper.
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This will complete its symmetrical shape and maintain the tonal counterchange of the mask design.
This illustration depicts some alternative designs for stylized noses.
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Note how each nose has been stylized and simplified into a basic shape without much detail.
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Simplified features on a mask communicate quicker and are more visible from a distance. They also have a greater expressive impact than more detailed images.
