Character sketch is a rough-and-ready rendering or thumbnail portrayal of an individual, capturing, in brief, that person’s physical characteristics, psychological attributes, and the like. The brief descriptions often capitalise on the more unusual or humorous aspects of the person’s character. Character sketches are usually identified by irony, humor, exaggeration, and satire. The term originates in portraiture, where the character sketch is a common academic exercise. The artist performing a character sketch attempts to capture an expression or gesture that goes beyond coincident actions and gets to the essence of the individual.
