Face-Off Portraits
Used For 💡
Getting people into a playful mindset
Encouraging participants to recognize one another’s presence
Building openness to failure
Helping participants notice and loosen judgments and biases
Group Size 👫
Done in pairs.
Total Time ⏳
4–5 minutes
Energy Level ⚡
Medium
Noise Level 🔊
Low → Medium (laughter tends to grow)
What This Is 🤔
Face-Off Portraits is a classic energizer inspired by Bob McKim, legendary Stanford engineering professor and creativity pioneer. Participants draw each other’s faces — without shortcuts, irony, or “safe” cartooning.
The result is equal parts hilarity and vulnerability. It reliably breaks down walls, invites creative risk-taking, and surfaces how quickly judgment enters the creative process.
How It Works 🔩
1. Set Up
Pair everyone up.
Partners sit facing each other.
Each person gets one sheet of A4 paper and a pencil.
2. The Drawing Challenge
Explain the task clearly: Draw your partner’s face as accurately as you can. No caricatures. No symbols. No stylizing.
Set a timer for 4 minutes.
When the timer starts, participants begin drawing.
Expect awkward laughter, nervous apologies, and a lot of self-conscious commentary.
3. Sign & Exchange
When time is up, each person signs their drawing.
Partners exchange portraits.
4. The Reveal (Optional)
Invite participants to look at all the drawings together.
For extra impact, tape the portraits on a wall near the workshop entrance — instant connection and repeated laughter.
What You’re Practicing 🎯
Creative risk-taking
Tolerance for imperfection
Awareness of judgment and bias
Seeing others more closely
Letting go of performance pressure
Why It Works 🏗️
This exercise places participants directly inside the moment where judgment arises. Questions like “Should I draw that nose?” or “What will they think?” surface instantly. Because the task is impossible to do “well,” perfection drops out of the equation, making space for honesty, humor, and learning.
The vulnerability is shared, which lowers social threat and builds trust quickly.
Pro Tips 🥠
Explicitly say: “Everyone will feel uncomfortable. That’s the point.”
Discourage jokes or self-deprecation during the drawing—let the awkwardness do its work.
Keep the time short. Ending early preserves energy and impact.
Common Pitfalls ⚠️
Allowing caricatures or cartoon-style drawings — they become a defense mechanism.
Letting the exercise run too long.
Over-explaining the meaning before people experience it.
Optional 1-min Debrief 💬
“What judgments showed up while you were drawing?”
“What did you avoid drawing — and why?”
“What helped you keep going despite the discomfort?”
The Takeaway 🥡
Face-Off Portraits is not about drawing skill. It’s a compact, embodied lesson in how judgment, fear, and self-consciousness shape creative work. By embracing imperfection together, groups learn to take risks, notice bias, and approach creativity with more courage — and a lot more lightness.