The art of chibification

[DokiDokiTsuna]

Does anyone here have difficulty drawing chibis, or had difficulty with it in the past? I'd like to know, what are the hardest parts of learning this skill??

I recently ran across a thread about how simplistic art styles shouldn't be looked down on, and how sometimes it's actually harder to simplify than it is to draw in 'normal' levels of complexity (which I totally understand).

And one of the examples given to illustrate the point was how difficult it is to draw chibis...which is something I've never really understood. Apparently it's "more than just drawing a big head on a little body"...but what else is there?? Okay, so you thicken the limbs a little, and maybe your characters don't get to have noses anymore, but apart from that...?

I'm not saying it's something no one should have trouble with...I just don't understand what makes it any more difficult than learning any other drawing style. It's not like it's an East vs. West thing; there are plenty of classic cartoon characters who are basically chibi in terms of body structure...

I probably shouldn't bother asking about this, but I just like to know these things. There are few things more frustrating than trying to help someone with an art-related issue and realizing the only advice you can think of is "just...draw the thing".

[Lummy]

Well, I had trouble with drawing chibi.
I drew the big eyes, small body etc. But something in their placement was just wrong (that moment when you know there is something no right in the drawing, but you don't know what you did wrong and can't fix it because of that).
So basically, I drew them and they just looked like shit and not cute.

[nathanKmcwilliams]

One of the hard parts of drawing Chibi, at least for me, is that they defy anatomical construction. Especially the torso, it's so hard to not draw shoulders or hips. Also where the head connects, there's no neck, so that's weird too.

Even though I have a cartoony style, I still use basic anatomy. Chibis throw everything off for me.

Simple doesn't equal easy.

[vothnthorvaldson]

I can't really draw them (at least it's not at all coming naturally to me, and they always look odd).

For me, the difficulty comes from being very put off by unrealistic proportions, and chibis are probably (one of?) the worst style for that. Even if I tell myself that it's just for fun, that it's not.. a surgery book I'm writing, and it's fine to have weird proportions... my brain gets my hand to reestablish somewhat realistic proportions. So it's a struggle from start to finish. I have to consciously remind myself every second that I want the weird proportions.

[nathanKmcwilliams]

That's pretty much the same for me. Another style that throws me off is that gangly looking style (like Regular Show, or Adventure Time) where the arms are just flaccid tubes that flail around. It looks so easy to draw but...my brain and arm don't agree xD

[IndigoShirtProd]

The proportions can usually be daunting. It's hard for some people to draw a head that's so large while also making sure the rest of the body is proportional with each other. I don't particularly have a problem with drawing chibis, but sometimes I make the arms too long for the body.

[snackbagstudios]

For me, drawing a chibi is about the expression. Like it can really be used to show an extreme emotion easy and cute. It is about the exarragation, the ekstra of the emotions, and not only for the cuteness.

[kurakart]

Simplification is never easy. Think about writing flash fiction vs short stories vs novels. In a novel you can get away with expanding on ideas, using flowery language, and taking your time describing a concept. In flash fiction every single word counts so you have to deliver your ideas precisely and quickly. The same with simplified art. Simplified art is not necessarily harder or easier than realistic art, but you need to know how to deliver what you want to deliver in a clearer, more concise way. You can't hide behind anatomy or rendering, etc. You only have a few shapes to play with.

Art is a means to an end. You pick the art that helps say what you want to say. Could I have done my series with a more realistic art style? Certainly. But I wanted to draw quickly (because I have a full time job and a family) and I also wanted to have some leeway to go a bit more whimsical whenever the story needed it. My story is from the eyes of a child, so that's the art style that fit best.

As for your actual question, no chibis aren't harder than realistic art. That doesn't make them cheap or easy... just, different. Kinda like how electronic music is easier than writing a 90 minute epic for an orchestra. Of course it's easier, but sometimes that's the music you need to make to tell your stories and thoughts and ideas.

[joannekwan]

I gave up on the anime chibis of the mid 2000's long ago, I cannot draw anime eyes period.

So I've adopted my own way of drawing chibis after I saw one of my friends simply use dot eyes for theirs.

[Random_Guy]

My style is pretty chibi, and let me say this:
Even though my style is super simple, it's chibi pixel art, I've met people who watch me create one, and have no clue what I did. There's a point where I always seem to lose people, but I can't quite figure out where.

I think it mostly has to do with the way the anatomy of a chibi is so off from regular anatomy. Small arms and legs, plus the big head, along with the kinda big face throw people off. Some people learn to draw like: "This should be this size compared to this." and when they see that defied it throws them off balance.

I don't know, maybe I've just met some stupid people, what do you guys think?

[Kelheor]

I never had problems with chibi (I don't draw them often, but I do like them a lot), but I learned that they are all about proportions indeed!
Originally I drew chibi like 1 (it's 2007,so please cut me some slack =)). You can see that they clearly don't have chibi proportions, so they don't look like they have to. Yeah, the head and eyes are bigger, but the limbs are too long and more "realistic". So they are just... kinda strange kids or something.

Then Morpheus came (2) and I got her chibi look better, because it was a chibi of a child. So yeah, since kids have different proportions, with short limbs, their chibi look more natural too. Not drawing legs under the dress helped a lot too!

Suddenly 10 years passed when I haven't been drawing any chibis, but I went into the contest (3), and I had to do a bit of research for these guys. Definitely found out that chibi are a more simplified style of art and I should work accordingly, also thinking more about small hands and small feet.

The last one are my recent, you can see they became more chubby, and if I draw their legs, those are shorter too.
Definitely no protruding shoulders and other possible parts. I'd probably say the eyes should be right in the middle (or almost) of their head (from hair top to chin). They usually do look better when their butt is slightly bigger or the same size as shoulders. I personally really like Hetalia (original Himaruya art) and Nendoroid chibis, they look the most appealing to me, without very huge eyes or other possible strange and off putting details.

Oh, and answering original question - it's definitely not harder than any other style Drawing a full realism is so much harder. The proportions and simplification may not be too easy, but it doesn't require that much of work, probably more adaptation to the style if anything. But it should be easier if you already draw in anime or cartoonish style, I think ^^

[Random_Guy]

Here we go:

My take on the anatomy of a chibi.

[Iris-Grimoire]

There are three types of the standard chibi actually - two heads tall(basically no limb detail), three heads tall(shoulders have returned), and four heads tall(just a short thin person). It's important to discard unecessary detail and try to condense patterns that need to show up into something visible, but as Kelheor said, it's all about proportions.

Here's some examples of Splitting Image chibis I did while studying the "common" techniques in art class! You don't even have to stick to those rules, but it's a nice place to start forcing yourself to remove parts of the character.

[silverraven0]

I don't think I really did since I can draw several sizes chibi including semi chibi easily(?). Plus most of them is commission to draw from real people, so I need to work with it.

what I find hard when I'm drawing chibi is How the f*ck am I supposed to make them hug another chibi without it looking like s*it, and how to work around their short little hands to do and hold things without looking awkward.

This kind of hugging took me a lot more time to draw because of how big their head was, and I need to make it so that it doesn't look like their neck looks broken or got absorbed by the other head. He body is another problem since I need to work with the tiny anatomy and attached the head with the body workout it looks off.

The several chibi size I mentioned. They're pretty much the traditional Japanese chibi in many sense.

[Kann]

I never had problems with chibi stuff. At some point I've even drawn waaaay too much chibis to the point of them getting out into my non-chibi style... XD

I think everyone has to find their own way of drawing chibis that feels natural to them. There as many ways of drawing them as there are artstyles.

[NickRowler]

I used to do chibi requests years ago (2011?) and looking back, their eyes haunt my dreams

I have another chibi variation which I call "Koby" which I used a lot of in high school and college. I prefer this one over the anime one. (image from 2007)

I guess my tip is be mindful of the eyes, bigger is not always better.