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Introduction
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Mouths and lips are varied according to the artist and the style. They show emotion and convey speech especially in manga. (Check out the expressions tutorial to find out more about mouths and emotions) Lips are drawn in anime/manga style but it is more common to only see them for females. The portrayal of the teeth and tongue are always simplified and generally drawn the same among different artists. The following are examples of different styles of drawing mouths.
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How to Draw Example 2 (How to draw a closed mouth)
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These are the general appearances of a closed mouth from the front, 3/4 and profile angles. The width and height of the mouth will depend on the character. Usually it is between the nose and the chin not being wider than the eye. A completely straight line for the mouth is generally not used unless for exaggeration. Any slight curve of the mouth will express a wide range of emotions. This is difficult to teach so all I can say is to always find references and experiment for different kinds of emotions. Usually a mouth curving up in the ends expresses happiness, curving down means sadness and a leveled mouth shows being content.
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How to Draw Example 3 (How to draw an open mouth with teeth)
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In this example a mouth is shown open but with teeth still together, like a grin or smile. Individual teeth aren't usually drawn unless in a close up. To show teeth draw two short lines on either side of the mouth to define the top and bottom teeth. I usually never draw a complete straight line between the top and bottom teeth. The lines for teeth are sometimes curved or drawn with shadows. For profiles of any type of mouth it is always important to draw the lips. Example 2 shows a great example of a profile of the mouth. Notice that the lips portrude from the mouth and forming the top and bottom lips.
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How to Draw Example 4 (How to draw an open mouth)
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Example 4 shows an open happy mouth. When I draw an open mouth I usually draw the top teeth and the tongue. The top teeth are usually drawn as a simplied block under the top of the mouth. The tongue is a curved mass at the bottom of the mouth.
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How to Draw Example 5 (More variations)
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I usually draw slightly open mouths because they can be used in a lot of situations and they look cool. :) Here are examples of lips I have seen. Lips are drawn when the character has lipstick or when the character is very feminine. The longer lip profile is another variation of a profile and the open mouth profile is a simplified variation.
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[Written and drawn by Henry Del Rosario, through experience and personal education]
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