Storytelling Portraits by Proko

Proko Storytelling Portraits is a short, self-paced online course by concept artist Lucas Peinador about designing faces that say something about the character. It introduces a ten-volume head mannequin, shows how to capture likeness, and then uses seven animal-inspired archetypes to give faces personality, ending with a full character portrait. Proko estimates around 18 lessons and four and a half hours of video, with one lesson free. The course costs $49 as a one-time purchase.

Most portrait courses aim at accuracy. This one is about design and character: how to push a face towards a type so that viewers read the personality at a glance. It is a compact companion to Peinador's longer How to Draw Faces Like a Pro.

What You Will Learn

According to the official course page, the course covers:

• Building the head from ten simple volumes
• Adapting that structure to different faces
• Capturing likeness
• Seven facial archetypes: lion, bear, ox, snake, fox, owl and pup
• Using archetypes to suggest personality
• A step-by-step character portrait process
• Designing a final portrait based on a story brief

Who Is Proko Storytelling Portraits For?

Proko lists it as suitable for beginners and intermediate artists. It suits character designers, concept artists, illustrators and comic artists who can already draw a reasonable head and now want their faces to feel like specific characters rather than generic people.

If you are still learning basic head construction, start with Portrait Drawing Fundamentals or How to Draw Faces Like a Pro, which Proko describes as the foundation course for faces. If you want long, detailed anatomy lessons, this short course is not the place for them.

Course Structure

The lessons are grouped into three sections:

• Head Building Blocks: a welcome and overview, the ten head volumes, a step-by-step drawing and adapting the structure
• Archetypes: the seven archetypes and how to apply them
• Character Process: taking a brief to a finished portrait

The course closes with a final project: reinterpreting the evil witch from Snow White within the pre-Columbian Bribri culture of Costa Rica. It is a good example of how the archetypes support a real design brief.

The teaching is mainly through step-by-step video demonstrations with the instructor's commentary, so it works best if you draw along.

Price and Access

The course costs $49 as a single payment, and Proko says buyers get unexpiring access. Split payments are available, and adding other Proko courses to the cart gives a bundle discount of up to 15%.

One lesson, on the ten head volumes, is free to watch. Non-premium visitors can see only selected previews. Refund requests go to Proko support within 30 days and may be reviewed if more than a quarter of the content has been downloaded.

When checked, the lesson count and running time were marked as estimates, so the final course may differ slightly.

About the Instructor

Lucas Peinador is a concept artist and illustrator who shares art advice online. He also teaches How to Draw Faces Like a Pro and How to Paint Stylized Portraits on Proko, so this course fits into a small series on faces and characters.

Things to Consider

• Time: Around four and a half hours of video, so it can be completed in a few weeks of evening practice.
• Prerequisites: Basic head construction. How to Draw Faces Like a Pro is the recommended foundation.
• Software: The page does not specify software. Peinador's other courses use digital painting apps with layers.
• Price: At $49, it is one of the cheaper ways to try Peinador's teaching.
• Feedback: Critiques and assignments are not listed for this course, so plan to share your work in the Proko community or elsewhere.

Start the Course

Interested in learning with Proko?

Start Storytelling Portraits

For the full syllabus and pricing of Proko Storytelling Portraits, visit the official Proko website.

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Last verified: October 16, 2026