Pattern formation is the developmental process that leads to the spatial ordering of cell differentiation. We have explored the problem of pattern formation in the development of the face of chick embryos. At early stages, the developing face consists of a series of small buds of tissue, the facial primordia that encircle the primitive mouth. The concepts of positional information provide a framework for considering how the patterns of differentiated cells are generated in the face. We suggest that the cranial neural crest cells must first be informed to which facial primordium they belong and then of their position within that primordium. The cells of the early primordia appear indistinguishable. However, when the mesenchyme cells are placed in high-density culture, cartilage differentiates. The extent and pattern of cartilage differentiation is characteristic for the cell population of each facial primordium. Myogenic cells also differentiate in the cultures, but the proportion of myogenic cells is independent of the extent of chondrogenesis. Within the facial primordia, a set of epithelial-mesenchymal interactions appears to be required for outgrowth and pattern formation along the proximodistal axis of the chick beaks. In culture, face epithelium locally inhibits cartilage differentiation and suggests that another set of epithelial-mesenchymal interactions may be involved in cell patterning. The mechanisms involved in specifying the mediolateral axis of the face, for example, the midpoint of the upper beak, are not known. Vitamin A derivatives, collectively known as retinoids, affect the development of the face of chick embryos and lead to a specific facial defect. Upper beak development is inhibited but the lower beak develops normally. The response to retinoids could be related to the specification of cells to belong to the facial primordium that will form the upper beak. Alternatively, retinoids may interfere with positional cues that operate to inform cells of their position within that primordium.