Facial Expressions: A Visual Reference for Artists

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As you engage in conversation with another person, taking note of eye movements is a natural and important part of the communication process. Or maybe it’s out of fear of something you need to do, like when you’ve just been told that you’ll have to swim across that alligator river again. Examples, please! Learning how to read microexpressions is an easy skill to learn and extremely useful in both professional and social life. Read our guide below on how to spot each of the seven microexpressions. Our mouth opens when we are scared because it helps us prepare for two things. First, it readies us in case we need to shout for help if we feel threatened. Second, it prepares us to breathe in a large amount of oxygen. This oxygen is helpful in case we need to run away…or fight the enemy!

The six universally accepted facial expressions are happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise, and disgust. Yan W-J, Wu Q, Liang J, Chen Y-H, Fu X. How fast are the leaked facial expressions: The duration of micro-expressions. J Nonverbal Behav. 2013;37(4):217-230. doi:10.1007/s10919-013-0159-8

Foley GN, Gentile JP. Nonverbal communication in psychotherapy. Psychiatry (Edgmont). 2010;7(6):38-44. He pulled the knife out of his arm with just a wince of pain and then jumped off the waterfall into the river and beat up a crocodile.” Ekman has designated seven facial expressions that are the most widely used and easy to interpret. Learning to read them is incredibly helpful for understanding the people in our lives. Don’t ask that guy for help. I just asked him the time, and he threw me this really dirty look!” Look down your nose at someone Some gestures may be cultural, however, so giving a thumbs-up or a peace sign in another country might have a completely different meaning than it does in the United States.

Each of these expressions is associated with a specific set of muscles that work together to create the characteristic facial features associated with that emotion. Sadness is the second most commonly recognized facial expression and is generally associated with negative emotions such as grief, despair, and misery. It is generally characterized by the presence of a frown and the use of the lower muscles in the face.Or you might be doing that expression that says, “Yes, yes, yes. You saw a horse with five legs. The thing is, I don’t believe you.” Examples, please! Song J, Wang L, Wang W. Eyebrow segmentation based on binary edge image. In: Huang D-S, Jiang C, Bevilacqua V, Figueroa JC, eds. Intelligent Computing Technology. Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Springer; 2012:350-356. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-31588-6_45

When we do this, we’re drawing attention to the fact that this person is not being very helpful. Other mouth facial expressions Pursed lips Interestingly, some of the expressions are not unique to humans. For example, joy is also seen in animals that have been domesticated, such as dogs and horses. Well, when someone’s doing something useless or unpleasant (or both), we can add the phrase “just sit there and …” (or “just stand there and …”).

This is another addition to the list of books that intend on using body language to learn about a certain person and use that information to analyse their psychology. This allows you to manipulate them, or have influence over their thinking process. Why has he always got that horrible smirk on his face? Can’t he just smile nicely or just not at all?” Sneer

Ekman P. Darwin's contributions to our understanding of emotional expressions. Philos Trans R Soc Lond, B, Biol Sci. 2009;364(1535):3449-51. doi:10.1098/rstb.2009.0189 Disgust is the expression you make when you smell something bad or hear something nasty. When we squint our eyes in disgust, our visual acuity increases, helping us find the origin of our disgust. It’s also an important microexpression to look out for— if you want to be attractive, science says avoid disgust at all costs. In cases where you do not know the other person well, such as a postal delivery driver you only see once a month, a distance of 10 to 12 feet may feel more comfortable. Discover the true feelings of your clients and partners, both in your professional and personal life. Surprise is expressed by widened eyes and a raised brow and is associated with emotions such as astonishment, amazement, and disbelief.

6. The Dictionary of Body Language: A Field Guide to Human Behavior

It’s like your face is saying, “Hey! I see what you’re doing. I don’t quite understand it, but I’m still in complete control here.” Examples, please! You know, that expression that says “Hmmm… That’s interesting, but how did it happen? I’m a bit confused but also interested!” Happiness is the most commonly recognized facial expression and is generally associated with positive emotions such as joy, pleasure, and delight. It is generally characterized by the presence of a smile and the use of the upper muscles in the face. Physical distance at this level usually occurs between people who are family members or close friends. The closer the people can comfortably stand while interacting can be an indicator of the level of intimacy in their relationship.