If you've ever tried to sketch people on location, you know how tricky it can be. They move, they change positions, and sometimes they disappear altogether. That's why I was excited to dive into The Urban Sketching Handbook: Drawing Expressive People by Róisín Curé. This book is part of the well-loved Urban Sketching Handbook series, and I picked it up hoping it would help me make my figures feel more alive and less like awkward mannequins.
I’ve been urban sketching for years, but drawing people still trips me up. I’ve got a decent handle on architecture, trees, and urban scenes (you can see some of my thoughts on simple urban sketching or drawing animals), but people are a different story. They bring a scene to life, yet they can be the hardest part to get right. I wanted to sketch expressive people in cafes, parks, sidewalks—everywhere—and do it with confidence. I didn’t want perfect portraits, just believable gestures, dynamic poses, and a sense of movement.
First Impressions of The Urban Sketching Handbook Drawing Expressive People
This handbook stands out because it addresses one of the most common fears in urban sketching: drawing people in motion. The author, Róisín Curé, breaks down the process with such clarity and empathy that it instantly feels doable. She’s not precious about it either—her style is loose, confident, and rooted in storytelling rather than perfection.
When I flipped through the book for the first time, I was relieved to see pages filled with real sketches, not polished illustrations. Some are quick, wobbly, even scribbly—but they all carry a spark of life. Róisín includes work from other urban sketchers too, and that variety helped me stop comparing my sketchbook to anyone else’s and just get drawing.
It’s not a massive book, but that’s the point. It’s compact enough to bring along in your urban sketching bag, and it doesn’t overwhelm you with too much theory. Instead, it offers just enough structure to push you to try new techniques next time you’re out sketching in the wild. I’ve brought it along on day trips, slid it into my urban sketching kit, and even read it over coffee before a sketching session.
Key Points
- Practice gesture drawing to loosen up your lines. It’s the quickest way to capture motion and mood before your subject walks away.
- Use people to anchor your scenes emotionally. Even a simple figure can make your urban sketch feel inhabited and alive.
- Embrace imperfection. Expressiveness matters more than accuracy when you’re drawing on location.
What You'll Learn in Drawing Expressive People
One of the biggest takeaways from this book is how to simplify what you see. People are complicated, but Róisín teaches you to look for the essential shapes and gestures that define a pose. There’s a strong emphasis on story—the visual narrative that happens when you sketch someone waiting for a bus, chatting with a friend, or reading in a park.
She also reminds you that you’re not sketching for a gallery. You’re capturing a moment. You don’t need every detail—just enough to communicate the character of the scene. That shift in mindset alone was a game-changer for me.
Poses and Proportions
There’s a short but solid section on proportion that’s extremely helpful, especially if you tend to draw heads too big or legs too short (guilty). It’s not technical in the way an anatomy textbook would be—this is practical proportion for quick, intuitive sketching. She gives a few reference points, like the height of a head versus the length of the torso, but keeps it flexible.
What helped me the most was her encouragement to draw people in context. Don’t isolate the figure and try to perfect it. Draw them sitting on a bench, holding a bag, leaning against a post. I’ve applied this idea in my sketches of urban sketching New York, where people blend into the rhythm of the city.
Drawing Faces and Expressions
Faces are intimidating, but she breaks them down with a relaxed approach. You don’t need a likeness, just an expression. Think raised eyebrows, a slouched posture, or crossed arms. It’s about communicating emotion, not creating a portrait.
Róisín includes tips on where to place the eyes, how to indicate a nose with a single line, and even how to hint at skin tones using minimal color. I found her guidance particularly helpful for sketching quickly. When I’m on location, I’ve got maybe thirty seconds before someone shifts or walks away. These tips have helped me capture a believable face without freezing up.
If you're trying to get better at expressive sketching, my own urban sketching people guide might be another helpful resource.
Sketching Groups and Crowds
This was my favorite part. Instead of isolating people, Róisín encourages drawing them in context—at cafes, in line, in crowds. This adds depth and realism to your urban sketches. It reminded me a lot of the way I approached urban sketching Seattle, where layering figures into a chaotic street scene brought the whole composition to life.
She talks about how to stagger heights, vary poses, and overlap figures to create believable groups. Even more importantly, she reminds you that it’s okay to suggest a crowd rather than draw each person in full detail. A few heads and shoulders are often enough.
What I Loved (and a Few Limitations)
The visuals are excellent. Sketches dominate the pages, which is exactly what I want in an art book. It’s easy to flip through and absorb ideas without reading every word. That said, the small format does mean the images aren’t huge. Some of the finer details can be hard to see, and I often wished for a larger version.
The tone is encouraging without being sugar-coated. Róisín shares plenty of her own sketches, wobbles and all, which made me feel less self-conscious about the awkward figures in my own sketchbooks. She comes across like a real person who understands what it feels like to freeze up when someone walks by and sees your sketchpad.
Another small drawback: there’s not a lot of instruction on color, but that’s not what this volume is for. If you're looking to explore color more deeply, I’d recommend pairing it with The Urban Sketching Handbook: Working with Color or my tutorial on watercolor urban sketching.
Where It Fits in Your Sketching Journey
This isn’t a beginner’s intro to drawing. If you’ve never picked up a pen before, you might want to check out a general urban sketching course or my easy urban sketching for beginners guide first. But if you’ve already started sketching scenes and want to populate them with actual humans—not just stick figures—this book will help you level up.
It’s also a great supplement if you’re working through any urban sketching techniques or looking for urban sketching exercises to add to your routine. I also found it helpful to sketch from my own urban sketching reference photos after reading a few pages, just to practice at my own pace.
If you’re someone who learns by seeing examples and trying things out, this book works beautifully. You can treat each spread like a mini-challenge: try a standing figure, then a walking one, then a seated pose. Add a hat or bag. Vary the linework. I love this way of learning, and it keeps things playful.
Final Thoughts
The Urban Sketching Handbook: Drawing Expressive People earned a spot in my kit not just because it’s compact, but because it feels like a conversation with a fellow sketcher who’s been in the field and knows how weird and wonderful drawing people in public can be. It reminds you that people are just shapes in motion, and with a little confidence and a loose pen, you can tell a visual story worth capturing.
If you’re building out your urban sketching library, this is a must-have alongside books like Urban Sketching Step by Step, Quick and Lively Urban Sketching, or The Urban Sketcher.
I keep coming back to this book—not for technical instruction, but for motivation. It helps me feel braver about putting people in my sketches, even when they’re imperfect. Especially when they’re imperfect.