Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

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Transcript of Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Page 1: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
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DrawingPeoplefortheAbsoluteBeginner

AClearEasyGuidetoSuccessfulFigureDrawing

MarkandMaryWillenbrink

Cincinnati,Ohiowww.northlightshop.com

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ThankyouforpurchasingthisArtistNetworkeBook.

Signupforournewsletterandreceivespecialoffers,accesstofreecontent,andinformationonthelatestnewreleasesandmust-haveartresources!Plus,receive

acouponcodetouseonyourfirstpurchasefromNorthLightShop.comforsigningup.

orvisitusonlinetosignupathttp://artistsnetwork.com/ebook-promo

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VIOLINPLAYERGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

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Contents

SpecialOffers

Introduction

Pencils

Paper

PencilSharpenersandErasers

AdditionalSupplies

Setup

CHAPTER1

TechniquesandPrinciplesSketchingApproaches

Structural,Value,ContourandBlack-and-WhiteSketching

CombiningApproaches

TracingandTransferring

PositiveandNegativeFormsandLostEdges

DevelopingtheStructuralSketch

Proportioning

Aligning

ComparativeImages

LightEffects

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CreatingDepth

CHAPTER2

ProportionsandFeaturesMaleandFemaleComparisons

BoneStructure

MovementandFlexibility

FlexPoints

Balance

ActionFigures

Mini-Demonostration:MaleFigure,FrontView

Mini-Demonostration:FemaleFigure,SideView

BodyTypes

HeadsandShoulders

FemaleHead,NeckandShoulders

Arms

Hands

Mini-Demonostration:Hand

Legs

Feet

Mini-Demonostration:Feet

Clothes

Mini-Demonostration:Cloth

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ShirtsandPants

Dresses

Mini-Demonostration:Shirt

Mini-Demonostration:Pants

HatsandHeadgear

ShoesandBoots

PostureandBodyLanguage

SportsActionPoses

CHAPTER3

Let’sDrawPeople!CommonMistakes

Demonstration:TheProfessor

Demonstration:ToddlerWithWateringCan

Demonstration:TheCavalier

Demonstration:DancerSitting

Demonstration:GirlReadingaBook

Demonstration:YoungManReclining

Demonstration:BalletDancer

Demonstration:GuitarPlayer

Demonstration:WomanSitting

Demonstration:YoungManSitting

Demonstration:YoungManRunning

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Demonstration:Violinist

Demonstration:VictorianDress

YourFinishedDrawing

Conclusion

Glossary

AbouttheAuthors

Copyright

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IntroductionThehumanformissimplyamazing!WhileworkingonDrawingPeoplefortheAbsoluteBeginner,wewerecontinuallyimpressedbytheintricacyofthehumanbody.Asyoujourneythroughthisbook,wehopeyouareinspirednotonlytodrawthehumanfigureaccurately,butalsotoappreciatetheuniquequalitiesofeveryperson.Withsimpletoolsandbasicprinciples,thisbookwillhelpdevelopyour

drawingskills.Funtricksandtechniqueswillbeintroducedalongthewaytohelpyoudrawpeople,evenifyouareanabsolutebeginner.Drawingisaskillthatcanalwaysbeimprovedupon,whetheryouarean

absolutebeginneroraseasonedartist.Nomatteryourskilllevel,wethinkyouwillenjoythisbook.Everyoneisanartist,includingyou,sogetreadytohavefun!

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MARKUSGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

WhatYouNeedPencilandpaperareallyouneedtostartlearninghowtodrawpeople.However,youmaywantadditionalsuppliestomakeyourexperienceeasierandmorefun.

Paper8 ⁄ "×11"(22cm×28cm)copierpaper9"×12"(23cm×30cm)medium-texturedrawingpaper9"×12"(23cm×30cm)medium-texturesketchpaperPapermaybetrimmedifneededformini-demosanddemos.

Pencils2B,4B,6Band8Bgraphitepencilsmechanicalpencil,.05mmgraphite

OtherSuppliesbulldogclipsdividerorsewinggaugekneadederaserlightboxmaskingtapemattingandframingslipsheetsprayfixativestraightedgetracingpapertransferpapervaluescale

OptionalSuppliesdrawingboardeaselpencilextenderpencilsharpenerplasticeraserwoodenmannequin

1 2

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PencilsYourchoiceofthepencilsandpapertousewillbedeterminedbytheintendedresultofadrawing.Contentandhardnessofthecorearetwoconsiderationsinchoosingthebestpencilsforaparticulardrawing.Drawingpencilstypicallyhaveawoodcasingthatsurroundsthecore.The

coreisalsoreferredtoaslead,thoughnoactualleadisusedinpencils.

GRAPHITE,CHARCOALANDCARBONGraphite,charcoalandcarbonpencilsmaybesimilarinappearancebuthavedifferentcores.Graphitepencilshavefirmleadmadeforcontrolledlinework,buttheyleave

ashinygrayappearance.Thesoftnessofcharcoalpencilscanproducetrueblacks,buttheysmear

easilyandmakedetailedlineworkhardtoachieve.Theleadofcarbonpencilsismadeoflampblackcarbonandmayinclude

graphiteorcharcoal.Theleadcanmaketrueblacklikecharcoalwithfirmerandmoresolidlead.Graphite,charcoalandcarbonarealsoavailableassticks,whichcanbeused

ontheirendsfornarrowstrokesorontheirsidesforbroadcoverage.Theydonothaveawoodenoutercasing,sothestickscanbemessytohandle.

COLOREDANDPASTELPENCILSColoredpencilsareavailableinblack,whiteandgrayaswellasavarietyofcolors.Dependingonthetype,theymayhavealeadthatishardandwaxy,makingthemgoodfordetailedlineworkbutdifficulttoblendorerase.Pastelpencilsdifferfromothercoloredpencilsbecausetheyhaveasoftchalk

leadthatmakesthemeasiertoblendanderase.

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MECHANICALPENCILSMechanicalpencilsuserefillablegraphite,whichproducesnarrowlinestrokes.Leadholders,alsoreferredtoasclutchpencils,areatypeofmechanicalpencilusingrefillablegraphitethatiswidelikeatraditionalpencil.Unlikeothermechanicalpencils,leadholderscanproducevariedlinewidthssimilartotraditionalpencilsbecauseoftheirwidelead.

Graphite,CharcoalandCarbonChoicesPencilsthathavegraphite,charcoalorcarbonastheircorearealsoavailableinstickform.

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MechanicalPencilsandLeadHoldersThenarrowleadofmechanicalpencilsproducesnarrowlinestrokes.Leadholders,alsoreferredtoasclutchpencils,canproducewiderlinestrokesbecauseoftheirwiderlead.

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ColorOptionsDrawingingraysorcolorscanbedonewithcoloredorpastelpencils.

WOODLESSGRAPHITEPENCILSThethickgraphitecoreofthesepencilsiscoatedwithlacquer,sothereisnowoodcasing.Thethickcore,whenusedonitsside,canproduceextremelywidepencilstrokes.

PENCILEXTENDERSApencilextenderisahandlewithasleevethatslipsoverashortenedpencil,allowingyoutogetmoreuseoutofit.Similardevicesareavailableforholdingcharcoalsticks.

PENCILHARDNESS

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Pencilleadsareratedfortheirhardness.TheharderleadsarelabeledHforhard,andthesofterleadsarelabeledBforblack,withFandHBleadsinbetween.Thenumbersrefertothedegreeoftheirsoftnessorhardness.Thegreaterthenumberonthepencil,themoreevidentthesoftnessorhardness.Thismeansthatan8Hpencilhasaharderleadthana2Hpencil,andan8Bpencilhasasofterleadthana2Bpencil.Thehardleadpencilscanretainasharppointduringuse.However,theycan’t

maketherichdarksthatsoftleadcanmake.Forthisreason,havingavarietyofpencilsofdifferenthardnessisusefulforcreatingarangeoflinequalitiesforfinisheddrawings.

StudentGradevs.ArtistGradeSomeartsuppliesarecategorizedbyqualitysuchasstudentgradeorprofessional/artistgrade,withtheprofessional/artistgradebeingthebetterofthetwo.

WoodlessGraphitePencilsWiderthanaveragestrokescanbemadewithwoodlesspencils.However,theyarepronetobreakingbecausetheyhavenooutercasing.

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ExtendYourPencilUsePencilextendersallowyoutomakeuseofpencilsthatwouldotherwisebetooshorttohold.Thesleeveofapencilextenderfitsovertheendofthepencil,soitcanbeusedtotheveryend.

HardtoSoftLeadsPencilleadsrangefromveryhardtoverysoft,withmoderateleadsinthecenter.

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PaperSketchinganddrawingpapersvaryinweight,contentandsurfacetexture.Besideswhite,papersarealsoavailableinoff-whites,graysandcolors.

WEIGHTPapersarecategorizedassketchordrawing.Sketchpapertypicallyrangesinweightsof50to70lbs.(105gsmto150gsm),whereasdrawingpapercanweigh90lbs.(190gsm)ormore.Thickerthansketchpaper,drawingpaperbetterwithstandserasingandheavypencilpressureforafinisheddrawing.

CONTENTPapersusedforsketchinganddrawingaretypicallymadefromwoodpulporcottonoracombinationofthetwo.Papermadefromwoodpulpcontainsacid,whichcausesdeteriorationandyellowingovertime.Cottonisacid-freeandisabetteringredientforpapersinceitwillnotagelikewoodpulp.Towithstandtheeffectsoftime,thebestdrawingpapersaremademostlyorentirelyofcotton.

SURFACETEXTUREAlsocalledtooth,thesurfacetexturereferstotheroughnessofthepapersurface.Paperswithasmoothsurfacetextureworkwellfordetailedlineworkappliedwithpencilsthatarenottoosoft,suchasgraphite.Paperswitharoughsurfacetextureworkwellforsoftpencilssuchascharcoal.

SIZEANDFORMATSmallpaperpadsareconvenient,portableandgoodforsmall,quicksketchesorfinisheddrawings.Thesheetscanberemovedindividuallyandattachedtoadrawingboardwithbulldogclips.

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DRAWINGBOARDSDrawingboardsprovideahard,smoothsurfacetosupportasheetofpaperforsketchingordrawingandtocontroltheamountofpencilpressure.TheboardsaremadeofMasoniteorlightweightwood.Somedrawingboardshaveclipsattachedtothem,butyoucanalsoholdthepaperinplacewithbulldogclips.

PadOptionsDifferentsizesketchanddrawingpadsareusefulforquicksketchesandfinisheddrawings.

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SupportfortheArtistWhensketchingordrawing,itisimportanttohavethesupportofaflat,hardsurface.Masoniteandwooddrawingboardsprovidesupportforsketchanddrawingpaper.

WarmUpWithCopierPaper

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Copierpaperisagoodalternativetoapadofsketchpaper.Itscheappricemaybelessintimidating,anditworkswellforquickwarm-upsketching.

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PencilSharpenersandErasersPencilsharpenersanderasersaresuppliesthatyouneedtohaveeasilyaccessible.Asyoudraw,sharpenyourpenciltokeepanicepointonthetip.Youmaybeinthehabitofusingtheeraserattheendofyourpencilwhile

sketching.Thoughthisbuilt-inerasermaybeconvenient,itmaydomoreharmthangood.Whenerasingisnecessary,useonlygooderasers.

PENCILSHARPENERSYoucansharpenpencilswithelectricsharpeners,manualsharpenersorwithacraftknifeandsandpaperpad.Sharpeningwithacraftknifeworkswellifyouwanttoexposemoreoftheleadortosharpenmorefragilesoftleadpencilsthatdon’talwayswithstandregularsharpening.Sharpeningtheleadofaleadholderisdonewitharotarysharpener.

ErasersErasingcandamagethesurfacetextureofthepaperandaffectthelayofthelinework.Forthisreasonit’sbesttolimittheamountoferasingwhendrawing.Oneapproachtosketchinganddrawingistostartwithlightpencilstrokesandgraduallymakethemdarkerthemoreconfidentyouareoftheirplacement.Withthismethod,thereislessneedtoerase.However,whenerasingisnecessary,trytobegentleandcarefulnotto

wrinklethepaperintheprocess.Beasstingyaspossiblewhenusinganeraser.Twotypesoferasersarekneadedandplasticorvinyl.Kneadederasershavea

puttylikeconsistencyanddon’tleavecrumbs.Theyarebestforliftinglightpencillinesbypressingtheeraseragainstthepapersurfaceorgentlyrubbingbackandforthovertheareatobeerased.

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Plasticorvinylerasersareusefulonareasthatarehardertoerase.Theseerasersleaveresidualstringsratherthancrumbsbehind,makingiteasiertocleanupaftererasing.

KeepingSharpPencilsharpenerscomeindifferentshapes,sizesandcolors.Somearesmallandportable,makingthemgoodforoutdooruse,whilelargeandelectricsharpenersareforstudiouse.Therotarysharpener,shownontheright,isspecificallydesignedtosharpenaleadholder.Justinsert

theleadholderinthetopandspintosharpenthelead.

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KneadedandPlasticErasersKneadederaserscanremovelighterpencillines,whileplasticeraserscanremovedarker,moredifficultpencillines.

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SharpeningWithaCraftKnifeandSandpaperPadTosharpenapencilbyhand,holdthepencilfirmlyinonehandandthecraftknifeintheother,withthebladefacingawayfromyourthumbandtowardtheendofthepencil.Alwaysusecautionwhenhandlingacraftknife.Pushthethumbholdingthepencilagainstthethumbholdingtheknifetocreateleverage,trimmingasectionofthewoodaroundthelead.Rollthepencilinyourhandtorepositionthepencilforanothercut.Continuetrimmingthewooduntiltheleadisevenlyexposed.Shapetheleadintoapointusingthesandpaperpad.

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AdditionalSuppliesTheseadditionalsuppliescanmakeasketchingordrawingsessiongomoresmoothly.

PROPORTIONINGDEVICESTheprocessofsketchinganddrawingcaninvolveproportioning,whichisthegaugingandsizingofthesubjectelements.Thesimplestdevicefordoingthismaybetheshaftofapencil,whilemoreaccuratedevicesortoolsincludedividersandsewinggauges.Adividerissimilartoacompassandcanbeeasilyadjustedtocomparesizes

andproportionswhenworkingfromphotographs.Asewinggaugecanbeusedinasimilarmannertocomparesizesand

proportionswhenworkingfromphotographsoralivemodel.

VALUESCALEAvaluescaleshowsarangeofdifferentvalues.Placethissimpledeviceoverthedrawingandthesubjecttocomparethevalueswhiledrawingtheartwork.

TRACINGANDTRANSFERRINGSUPPLIESTocompleteadrawingyoumayneedtotraceandtransferastructuralsketch.Alightboxilluminatestheimagefrombehind,allowingyoutotraceastructuralsketchontodrawingpaper.Anothermethodistotransferastructuralsketchontodrawingpaperwith

transferpaper(alsocalledgraphitepaper).Tousetransferpaper,placeitbetweenthestructuralsketchandthedrawingpaper(onthebottom).Redrawthestructuralsketchwithahardleadpencilsotheimageispressedontothedrawingpaper.Transferpapercanbepurchasedreadyforuse,butyoucanalsomakeyour

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Transferpapercanbepurchasedreadyforuse,butyoucanalsomakeyourownwithtracingpaperandagraphitepencil:Coveronesideofasheetoftracingpaperwithsoftgraphite,thenwipeacrossthesurfacewithacottonballslightlydampenedwithrubbingalcoholtobindthegraphitetothetracingpaper.SeeTracingandTransferringinChapter1formoreinformationaboutusinga

lightboxandtransferpaper.

MASKINGTAPEWhentracingortransferring,usemaskingtapetoadherethesheetsofpapertogetherandkeeptheminplace.Namebrandmaskingtapeisbestbecauseitgripsthepaperwellandreleaseswithouttearingthepaper.

FIXATIVEFixativebondsthelineworktothepaperandpreventsthesmearingoffinisheddrawings.Charcoalandpastelaremorepronetosmearingthangraphitebecausetheyaresoftandpowdery.Alwaysapplyfixativeinawell-ventilatedarea.

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ProportioningDevicesThoughapencilwilldo,formoreaccurateproportioning,adividerorasewinggaugecanbeused.

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LightboxandTransferPaperAlightboxandtransferpaperaretwooptionsfortransferringastructuralsketchontodrawingpaper.

ValueScaleAvaluescalewillhelpyoutoknowwhethertolightenordarkenyourdrawing.

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SetupDrawingistheprocessofrecordingwhatwesee.Thesubjectcanbedrawnbystudyingalivemodelorfromphotographsandstudysketchesusedasreferencematerial.I(Mark)finddrawingfromalivemodelfluidandessential,whereasworkingfromphotosismoretechnicalandprecise.

WORKINGWITHALIVEMODELFortheartistthereisperhapsnobetterdrawingexperiencethanfirsthandfigureobservationusingalivemodel.

WORKINGFROMPHOTOGRAPHSANDSKETCHESIfalivemodelisn’tavailable,thenextbestthingistoworkfromphotosandsketches.Close-upandangledimagescanaidinthestudyofthesubject.Workingfromphotosandsketchesallowsstudyinganddrawingthesubject

withoutbeinglimitedtothemodel’spersonaltimeframe.

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SetupWithaLiveModelSketchinganddrawingalivemodelcanbedoneusinganeaseloranarthorse(donkeybench)tosupportthepaperanddrawingsurface,orbysittingandholdingthepaperanddrawingsurface.AFrencheaselwithadrawingboardattachedisespeciallyusefulbecauseitisportableandhasadrawerforstoringandcarryingsupplies.Suppliescanincludesketchordrawingpaper,drawingboard,pencils,erasers,pencilsharpenerand

bulldogclips.Themodel’sposeshouldbeeasyforthemodeltokeepsoshedoesn’tgettiredandachyafteran

extendedperiodoftime.Astickorstaffcanbeusedforthemodeltosupportherarms.Itworkswelltosetupyourdrawingsurfacesothesubjectappearsnexttothepaperratherthanabove

orbehind.Youwillmoreeasilycomposeyourdrawingwhenlookingbackandforth,fromdrawingtosubject.

SetupWithPhotographsandSketchesSupplieswhenworkingfromphotosandsketchesincludesketchordrawingpaper,drawingboard,pencils,erasersandapencilsharpener.Youcansitatatableorstandataneasel.

SketchingontheGo

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SketchingontheGoAllyoureallyneedtosketchwhileoutandaboutisasketchpadandpencilforquick,observationalsketches.

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CHAPTER1

TechniquesandPrinciples

Thischapterwillexploresketchinganddrawingtechniquesaswellasprinciplesincludingperspectiveandvalues.Sketchinganddrawingaresimilar,yetdifferent.Sketchingmaybequickandlooseforthepurposeofobservingthesubject,planningadrawing,anddevelopingtheskillofdrawing.Drawinghasagoalofmakingafinishedworkofart.

PencilGripsandStrokesThegripofthepencilaffectslinequalitywhensketchinganddrawing,creatingavarietyoflinesfromtightandcontrolledtolooseandsketchy.Furthermore,theangleofthepencilcaninfluencelinewidth.Heldupright,apencilmakesnarrowlines,whileapencilheldatalowanglemakeswiderlineswithmoreoftheleadincontactwiththepapersurface.Youmayholdthepencildifferentlydependingonhowyouaresketchinganddrawing.Whenwarm-upsketching,choosetheloosegriporthepalmgripforloose,free-flowinglines.Forpreciseandcontrolledlinework,choosethehandwritinggrip.

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LooseGripHoldthepencilbythefingertipsorclosertothepalm.Morecontrolledlinestrokescanbemadebyholdingthepencilclosertothepoint.Becauseofthelowangleofthepencil,widelinesarepossible.

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PalmGripTheendofthepencilrestsinthepalmforthisgrip.Widelinesarepossiblebecauseofthelowangleofthepencilagainstthepapersurface.

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HandwritingGripHoldthepencilasifforhandwriting.Morecontrolledlinestrokesarepossiblebyholdingthepencilclosertothepoint.Becausetheangleofthepencilisupright,onlythetipoftheleadisincontactwiththepaper,whichmakesfornarrowlines.

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SketchingApproachesThereareavarietyofapproachestosketching.Gesturedrawingorsketchingisquickfreehandsketchinginitsrawestformandisn’tspecifictoacertainlinestyleorappearance.Otherapproachesincludestructural,value,contourandblack-and-white

sketching.Whiletheseapproachesmaybedonequickly,theiremphasisisoninterpretingthesubjectthroughlinestyleoronobservingcertaincharacteristics.

GESTUREDRAWINGFreehandsketchingorgesturedrawingisquicksketchingusedtoloosenupforlifedrawingsessionswithoutregardtoproportionsormeasurements.Theintentofthistypeofsketchingistostudytheessenceofthesubjectandtocaptureitsactionorgestures.Gesturedrawingwilldevelopyourobservationanddrawingskills.

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TimedSketchingExercises:FreehandSketchesYoucandogesturedrawingasaseriesofquick,freehandsketches,producingoneafteranother,typicallyinonly30secondsto2minuteseach.Trydoingthisexercisepriortoamorelengthydrawingsession.Thegoalofgesturedrawingisn’taccuracybutobservingandcapturingtheessenceandmovementofthesubjectwhilekeepingtheactionofsketchingfluidandconstant.

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Structural,Value,ContourandBlack-and-WhiteSketchingThesedifferentapproachestosketchingcanbeusedtostudythesubjectorasfinisheddrawingstyles.

StructuralSketchingAstructuralsketchdefinestheformofthesubjectthroughlinesthatemphasizeaccurateproportionsand

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placementoffeatures.Byitself,astructuralsketchhasnovaluestocommunicatethelightsanddarks.Startastructuralsketchbyblockingintheoverallform,thenprogressivelyaddingsmallerfeatures.

ValueSketchingAvaluesketchinterpretstheformofthesubjectthrougharangeoflightsanddarks.Thegeneralizationofthevaluesistheemphasisratherthanthestudyoftheplacementofthefeaturesandproportions.

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ContourSketchingAlsocalledcontinuouslinesketch,acontoursketchdefinestheformofthesubjectthroughacontinuousline.Thistechniquedevelopsyourobservationalskillsdifferentlythantheothersketchinganddrawingapproachesbecauseofitsemphasisonshapesratherthanvaluesorproportionalaccuracy.

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Black-and-WhiteSketching(Chiaroscuro)Ablack-and-whitesketch,alsocalledchiaroscuro,isamoreextremeversionofavaluesketchandinterpretsthesubjectthroughhighlycontrastingvalues.Theresultsofthisapproachcanbeboldanddramatic.

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CombiningApproachesSketchingapproachescanbecombinedtocreateafinisheddrawing.We’llusethisprocessthroughoutthedemonstrationsinChapter3,wherewe’llworkupastructuralsketch,thencombineitwithanothersketching/drawingapproach,eitherbyaddingvaluesorwithcontourdrawing.

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MakeaStructuralSketchWorkupastructuralsketchofthesubjectwithattentiontoaccurateproportionsandplacementoffeatures.Atthisstagedon’taddanyadditionallinework.

CombinedWithAnotherDrawingApproachUsethestructuralsketchasaguidefortheplacementofthefinishedlinework.Inthisexample,thestructuralsketchcombineswithvaluestocreatethefinisheddrawing.

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TracingandTransferringYoucancombinethestructuralsketchwiththefinishedlineworkonthesamesheetofdrawingpaper;however,thismayinvolveerasing,whichcanalterordamagethesurfaceofthedrawingpaper.Toavoidunnecessaryerasingonthedrawingpaper,youcanworkupthe

structuralsketchonasheetofsketchpaperandthentraceortransfertheimageontothedrawingpaperforthefinallinework.Asanaddedbonus,youcanuseacopiertoadjustthesizeofthestructuralsketchbeforetracingortransferringforthefinaldrawing.

TracingaStructuralSketchTousealightboxtotracethestructuralsketchontothedrawingpaper,tapeasheetofdrawingpaperoverthestructuralsketchandplaceitonthelightbox.Itslightwillallowtheimagetoshowthrough,whichyoucanthensketchontothedrawingpaper,minusanyunwantedlines.

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canthensketchontothedrawingpaper,minusanyunwantedlines.

TransferringaStructuralSketchTotransferasketch,tapethestructuralsketchtothedrawingpaper,theninsertasheetoftransferpaper(alsocalledgraphitepaper)graphite-sidedownbetweenthestructuralsketchanddrawingpaper.Usea2Hpenciltogooverthenecessarylinesofthestructuralsketchtotransfertheimageontothedrawingpaper.Tomakeyourowntransferpaper,evenlycoveronesideofthetracingpaperwithlinesfromthe2B

pencil.Tobondthegraphiteofthepenciltothepaper,smearacottonball,slightlydampwithrubbingalcohol,overthesurfaceofthetracingpaper.

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alcohol,overthesurfaceofthetracingpaper.

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PositiveandNegativeFormsandLostEdgesPositivedrawingdefinesthesubjectbybeingdarkonalightbackground,similartoasilhouette.Negativedrawingistheoppositeofpositivedrawing,definingthesubjectaslightagainstadarkbackground.Alostedgeoccurswherethesubjectblendsintothebackground.Adrawingcanuseacombinationofanyorallofthesetechniques.

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PositiveFormThisfigureisdrawnasapositiveformbybeingdarkagainstalightbackground.

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NegativeFormThisfigureisdrawnasanegativeformdefinedbythedarkofthebackground.

CombiningPositiveandNegativeFormsandLostEdgesThisdrawinghasbothpositiveandnegativeareas.Mostofthebottomhalfofthefigureisapositiveform,

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Thisdrawinghasbothpositiveandnegativeareas.Mostofthebottomhalfofthefigureisapositiveform,drawndarkagainstalightbackground,whereasthetophalfisexpressedwithanegativeformbecauseitislightagainstadarkbackground.Lostedgesoccurwherethesubjectblendsinwiththebackground,suchaswheretheshapeofthefigure’srightfootandalsothebackofthefigureblendintothebackground.

UsingIdentifiableFormsThoughasubjectmaybeofinterest,theimagemaybemoredifficulttoidentifythanitneedstobe.Visualizethesubjectinsilhouetteformandconsiderwhetheritsshapeisdifficulttoidentify.Ifitis,chooseadifferentposeorangleforthesubjectthatiseasytoidentifyinsilhouetteform.Thefirststeptocreatingasuccessfuldrawingistotakeintoconsiderationthattheouterformofthesubjectiseasilyidentifiable.(SeemoreonthissubjectatthebeginningofChapter3.)

Page 60: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

DevelopingtheStructuralSketchTodevelopastructuralsketch,you’lluseblocking-in,proportioningandaligning.Youcanthenusethestructuralsketchasthefoundationforafinisheddrawing.

BLOCKING-INBlocking-ininvolvessketchingthegeneralformofthesubjectthroughbasiclineandshape.You’llincreaseaccuracythroughouttheprocessbyproportioningandaligningalongwithstructuraldetails.

Page 61: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

LookforBasicShapesStarttoblockinthesubjectbysketchingtheoverallformusingthemostobviouslinesandshapes.Proportioningandaligningcanbeusedtoensuretheaccurateplacementofthefeatures.

Page 62: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

DeveloptheFormDeveloptheformbyprogressivelyaddingsmallerfeatures.Theproportionsofthepreviousstepmustbeaccurateforthepropersizeandplacementofthesefeatures.

Page 63: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

AddtheDetailsNowadddetailstocompletethestructuralsketch,whichcanbeusedasthefoundationforafinisheddrawing.

Page 64: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ProportioningProportioningprovidesaccuracytothesketchbycomparingandmeasuringthefeaturesofthesubject.Thoughtheprocessesforproportioningalivemodeloraphotoimagearesimilar,thetoolsaredifferent.Thetoolsusedtoproportionalivesubjectincludeapencilorsewinggauge,whilethetoolsusedtoproportionaphotoimagemayalsoincludeadivider.

ProportioningaLiveModelWhenproportioningalivemodel,lockyourarmforwardwithapencilheldstraightupanddown.Viewthetopofthepenciltothetopofthesubjectandslideyourthumbdownthepencil.Holdyourthumbinplacewhenyou’vechosenaunitofmeasurement.Nowyoucanusethatmeasurementtodeterminethelengthandwidthofsomeofthefeatures.Youcanuseasewinggaugeinsteadofapencilforsimilarresults.

Page 65: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FindaUnitofMeasurementFindafeatureofthesubjectthatcanbeusedasaunitofmeasurement.Inthisexample,weusethedistancefromthetopoftheheadtothetopofthelegasaunittocomparemeasurementsofotherfeatures.

Page 66: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

CompareWiththeUnitofMeasurementTaketimetolookforsimilarwidthsandlengthsinyoursubjectwhenyouarebeginningasketch.Inthisexample,ifwecomparetheunitofmeasurementoftheheightofthekneetothetopofthehead,wefinditisthesamedistanceasthekneetotheelbow.Youmayfindsomethingelseinthefiguretomeasuretouseasaproportioningunit.

Page 67: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

AligningAligningcomparestheplacementofelementsofasubjectthroughlinecomparisons.Vertical,horizontalandanglearethreecomparisonstolookforthroughoutthesketchinganddrawingprocesses.

Page 68: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 69: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

VerticalAligningUseapencilplacedstraightupanddowntolookforelementsthatalignvertically.Inthisexample,thefacealignswiththestomachandtheheel.

HorizontalAligningUseapencilplacedstraightacrossforhorizontalaligning.Inthisexample,theelbowalignswiththetopofthelegandtheknee.

Page 70: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

AngleAligning

Page 71: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

AngleAligningForanglealigning,observeanyfeaturesofthesubjectthatlineuporangle.Inthisexample,theforeheadalignswiththekneeandthetoes.

Page 72: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ComparativeImagesOnetechniqueforproducingaccuratesketchesanddrawingsistoviewthesubjectalongsidethedrawingsurface.

ComparingaLiveSubjecttotheDrawingTocomparetheimageofalivesubjecttothedrawing,positionthedrawingboardtothemodelsothatbothappearsidebysideatrelativelythesamesize.Placehorizontallinestoalignthesubjectwiththedrawingfromtoptobottom.

Page 73: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ComparingaPhotototheDrawingTocomparetheimageofaphotographtothedrawing,holdthephototothesideofthedrawingsothatbothappearsidebysideatrelativelythesamesize.Placehorizontallinestoalignthesubjectwiththedrawingfromtoptobottom.

Page 74: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MannequinForms

Page 75: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MannequinFormsOnemethodofblocking-inistosketchthefigureinmannequinformwithindividualbodyparts.Asmallwoodenartist’smannequinmayalsobeofuseinobservingbasicbodyproportions.

ThePerfectModelAlivemodelcanbearelative,aneighbororsomeoneyouobserveinacafé.Thebestmodelcanexpresspersonalityjustthroughhisappearance.Whileitisimportanttounderstandthehumanform,itisn’tnecessarytodrawnudemodelstolearnfiguredrawing.Youmayneedtoworkoutsomeoftheformofthebodyunderneaththeclothestogainamoreaccurateinterpretationofthemodel.Thiscanbedonebylightlysketchingthebodyformbeforeworkingoutthedetailsoftheclothes.

Page 76: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

LightEffectsLightandshadowappearancecanchangebydifferentapplicationsoflightinascene.Depthcanalsobesuggestedthroughformwiththeeffectsoflightandshadowonthesubject.Elementstowatchforandstudyincludelightsource,highlight,formshadow,

castshadowandthearealightenedbyreflectedlight.LightSource.Ifoutdoorsinthedaylight,theoriginoflightinascenewouldbethesun.Therecanbemorethanonelightsourceforascene.Highlight.Abrightspotorareathatappearsonsomethinginthescene.FormShadow.Ashadowthatdisplaysthedepthanddimensionoftheformofsomethinginthescene.CastShadow.Ashadowthatiscastfromsomethingontoanothersurface.ReflectedLight.Lightthatisreflectedoffasurfacethatlightensanothersurface.

Page 77: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 78: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

LightFromFront,TopLeftByobservingthecastshadowonthegroundbehindthefigure,youcandeterminethatthelightsourceisfromtheupperleftinfrontofthefigure.Withthisangleoflight,thefigureiswelllitfromthefront,withshadowsthatdisplaytheformoftheface,handsandclothes.Noticethehighlightsonthefaceandhandsandthearealightenedbyreflectedlightattheundersideofthesleeve.

Page 79: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 80: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

LightFromBehind,TopRightThecastshadowinthissceneisonthegroundtotheleftinfrontofthefigure,whichmeansthelightsourceisfromthetoprightbehindthefigure.Withthefigurebeingmostlyinshadow,theformsarenotasnoticeableandthefigureisdarkerandmoremysterious.Noticethehighlightsontherightsideofthefaceandthetopoftherightsleeve,andtheundersideofthesleeveislightedbyreflectedlight.

Page 81: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

CreatingDepthDepthcanbeexpressedinfiguredrawingbyapplyingtheprinciplesoflinearperspectiveandforeshortening.Depthisalsoexpressedwiththelightandshadowsofthesubject.

LINEARPERSPECTIVELinearperspectiveimpliesdepththroughthesizeandplacementofelements.Closerelementsappearlargertotheviewer.Horizonandvanishingpointsarefeaturesoflinearperspective,thoughtheyarenotalwaysobvioustotheviewer.Thehorizonlineiswherethelandandskymeet,andvanishingpointsare

whereparallelelementsconvergeinthedistanceonthehorizon.Thoughitishelpfultounderstandtheprinciplesoflinearperspective,itis

seldomnecessarytoplotoutthehorizonandvanishingpointswhendrawingfigures.

Page 82: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

LookingAcrossWiththisstraight-onview,theobserverislookingacrossatthescene.Thehorizonisattheeyeleveloftheadultfemalefigurewithasinglevanishingpointbehindthefigure.

Page 83: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

LookingAcrossatanAngleBymovingthevanishingpointtothefarright,thefiguresareseeninthree-quarterview.Fromthisview,asecondvanishingpointisnoticeableontheleft,makingthisatwo-pointperspectivedrawing.Thoughviewedatanangle,thehorizonstillrestsattheeyeleveloftheadultfigure.Noticethatthefiguresofthisscenedisplaymoredepththanthepreviousexample.

LookingDownatanAngleFromthisviewyou’relookingdownonthesceneatanangle.Noticethatthevanishingpointsarealongthehorizon,thesameasthepreviousdrawing,butthehorizonhasmovedabovethefigures.Lookingdownatthisanglecanmakethesubjectfeeldistantorremovedfromtheviewer.

Page 84: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FORESHORTENINGForeshorteningimpliesdepthbyshorteningthelengthoftheindividualfeaturesofasubjectwhenviewedstraighton.Foreshorteningusestheprinciplesoflinearperspectiveonspecificfeaturesofthesubject.

Page 85: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 86: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShortenedFeaturesInthisdrawing,theportionofthearmthatisextendedoutwardtowardtheviewerappearsshortenedandthussuggestsdepththroughforeshortening.

Page 87: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 88: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

SubtletiesofForeshorteningForeshorteningwillnotlookawkwardifdonecorrectly.Inthisdrawing,thearmsandlegsofthefigureareforeshortenedinplaces,mostevidentlyinthearmandlegjustabovetherightknee.Theotherarmandlegareforeshortenedalso,althoughnotasnoticeable.Foreshorteningdoesn’tjustapplytofigures.Inthisdrawing,theguitarisalsoforeshortened.

Page 89: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

CHAPTER2

ProportionsandFeatures

Studyingtheproportions,formsandfeaturesofthehumanbodywillbenefitthedrawingprocess.Thoughproportionsmaydifferdependingonthegender,ageandbodytype,allpeoplesharecommonstructureandmovement.

ADULTPROPORTIONSFortheaverageadult,thelengthofthelegscompriseshalftheheight.Theheightofthehumanfigureisaboutthesameastheheadheightcountedoutseven-and-a-halftimes.

Page 90: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MaleProportionsNoticetheplacementoftheelbowsandkneesaswellaswherethehandsrestinrelationtotheupperlegs.Themaleformhaswideshouldersandnarrowhips.Itcanhaveabulkyappearancewiththickfeaturesincludingalargetorsoandalowwaistline.Wheninterpretedindrawing,themalefigurecanshowanangularfeelandchunkyfeaturestoemphasizethemuscularform.

Page 91: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FemaleProportionsThefemaleform,whencomparedtothemale,hasnarrowshouldersandwidehips.Havingahighwaistline,thefemaleformhasasmallertorsoandlargerabdomenthanthemalefigure.Thefemalefigurecanhavealookofgracefulness,whichincludesdelicatefeatures.

Self-ReflectionsIfyouhavealargemirrororacamerawitharemoteshutterrelease,youcanuseyourselfasamodelforfiguredrawings.

Page 92: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MaleandFemaleComparisonsThoughhalftheheightofbothmaleandfemalefiguresismadeupofthelengthofthelegs,theplacementofthewaistisdifferent.Menhavealowwaistlinewithhigh,broadshoulders,makingforalargetorso.Womenhaveahighwaistlinewithlow,narrowshoulders,makingasmalltorsoandlargeabdomen.Thoughtherecanbemanygeneralizationsconcerninggenderdifferences,perhapstheonlyconsistentdifferencebetweenmaleandfemaleappearancesistheplacementofthewaistline.Forthesakeofcomparison,we’reshowingthemaleandfemaleillustrationsoverlappingoneanotheratthesameheight,thoughmenaretypicallytallerthanwomen.

Page 93: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 94: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FrontComparisonWiththefemalefigureplacedinfrontofthemale,sizecomparisonsofthefeaturesaremorenoticeable,especiallyintheupperbody.Thefemaleneckisthinandlong,makingtheshoulderslowerthanthemale.Thefemaletorsoissmallwithahighwaist.Theleglengthandthefallofthehandsinrelationtotheupperlegisthesameforbothfigures.

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Page 96: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

SideComparisonFromtheside,theslenderfemaleformisnoticeableinfrontofthethickermaleform.Thearms,legsandneckofthemalearealsothickerthanthoseofthefemale.

Page 97: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

BoneStructureIt’seasiesttoseethebonestructureofthebodywherethereislessmusclearoundthebones,suchasthehands,wrists,feetandankles.Theouterformofthebodyisalsonoticeablyinfluencedbythebonestructureintheshoulders,elbows,ribs,pelvis,upperlegs,hipsandknees.

Page 98: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MaleandFemaleBoneStructureExceptfortheirsize,thebonestructuresofthemaleandfemalefiguresappeartobeverysimilar.Uponcloserexamination,however,themalehaswideshouldersandalargeribcagewhereasthefemalehasa

Page 99: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

closerexamination,however,themalehaswideshouldersandalargeribcagewhereasthefemalehasalarge,widepelvis.

Page 100: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MovementandFlexibilityAlthoughthestructureofthehumanbodyhasarigidskeletalformmadeupofsolidbones,themusclesandtendonsconnectedtothosebonesallowthebodytobecapableofmovement,permittinganinfiniterangeofposes,posturesandpositions.

ArmandLegMovements

Page 101: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Viewedfromthefront,thepositionsoftheadultformareevident.LeonardodaVinci’sVitruvianMandrawingisanearlierstudyoftheproportionsandmovementsofthehumanform.

Page 102: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FlexPointsJustasawoodenmannequinhasjointsthatallowittobend,thehumanbodyhasflexpointsthatallowformovement.Thisflexibilityisperformedthroughactionsinvolvingthejoints,musclesandtendonsincooperationwiththebones.Jointsareintheshoulders,hips,elbows,knees,wrists,anklesandspine.

Page 103: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ElbowsandKneesTheelbowsandkneesarehingejoints.Theelbowsallowthearmstobendforward,whereasthekneesallowthelegstobendbackward.

Page 104: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 105: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

SpineMovementismadepossibleforthevertebraeofthespinethroughglidejoints.Asafiguregoesfrombeinguprighttobentover,thewaistlinegoesfromhorizontaltoalmostvertical.In

thesameaction,thehipsandupperlegsshiftbackwardinanefforttokeepthefigurebalanced.Thenextpagesexplainmoreaboutbalanceandthehumanfigure.

Page 106: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShouldersandHipsTheshouldersandhipsareball-and-socketjoints.Theyallowformoreflexibilitythanelbowsandknees,whichhavehingejoints.

Page 107: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

BalanceWhenupright,thehumanbodyintuitivelyadjustsitselftokeepinbalance.Thisbalanceismaintainedbykeepingthecenterofbalanceoverthefeet,whichactasasupportbase.Thelinethatrunsthroughthecenterofbalancetothecenterofthesupportbaseisthelineofbalance.

Page 108: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 109: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

BalanceWhenStandingThecenterofbalanceforastandingfigurewitharmsrelaxedislocatedaboutatthenavel,betweenthefrontandbackofthebody.Men,havingalargertorso,generallyhaveahighercenterofbalancethanwomen.Thelineofbalancerunsthroughthecenterofbalancetothecenterofthesupportbase,thefeet.Thewiderthefeetareplacedapart,thesturdiertheformwillbebecauseithasabroadersupportbaseto

straddlethecenterofbalance.Thecenterofbalancecanchangeormayevenbeoutsidethebodydependingontheformandactionofthebody.

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Page 111: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 112: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 113: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FindingBalanceFiguresviewedfromthesidedisplayhowthelineofbalancepassesthroughtothefeet,whichactasthesupportbase.Todeterminethelineofbalance,simplydrawaverticallineupthroughthefigurefromthefloorwherethefeetareresting.

Page 114: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 115: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

WrestlingWithBalanceAwrestler’scrouchedstance,withfeetplacedfarapart,givesthebodyalowcenterofbalanceandawidesupportbase.Holdingthispose,theathleteishardtoknockoff-balance,yetisreadytospringintoaction.

Page 116: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 117: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

BalancingActThoughthecenterofbalanceofthisposeislocatedcentraltotheform,thefiguredistributesitsweightoutwardinanactofmaintainingbalance.Thefigure’sarmsandlegareextendedtoequalizethebody’sweightsothecenterofbalancestaysover

thesupportbase,whichisjustthefrontportionofonefoot.

Page 118: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 119: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShiftingtheBalanceThoughthelineofbalancerunsthroughthecenterofthisfigure,thebalancehasshiftedbecauseonelegissupportingmostofthebody’sweightwhiletheotherlegisrelaxed.Indoingthis,thehipdropsovertherelaxedlegandthelineofthehipstiltsasthebodyadjuststomaintainbalance.Whenwalkingorrunning,thisshiftingandbalancingoccursinmotionasafigurekeepsitsstride.

Page 120: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 121: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 122: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

UpsettingtheBalanceAfiguremayappearoutofbalanceifthecenterofbalanceisnotoverthefeet,whichactasthesupportbase.Exceptionstothisrulemayoccurwhenafigureisinmotionsuchaswhenrunningorjumping.Thelastdrawingcouldbevisualizedasslippingonabananapeelorridingasurfboard.

Page 123: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ActionFiguresTomakeafigureappearinaction,movethelineofbalanceawayfromthesupportbase.Walkingandrunning,observedfromthesideandthefront,displayhowactioncanaddinteresttoafiguredrawing.

WALKINGMovingthelineofbalanceforwardofitsstationarypositionsuggestsmotion.Thegreaterthemomentumofthefigure,themorethelineofbalancediffersfromitsstationaryposition.Armsandlegsswingandbendinrhythmastheweightofthebodytransfers

fromonelegtoanotherwhenitisinmotion.

Page 124: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 125: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 126: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 127: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

WalkingFigure,SideViewAsafigurewalks,thelineofbalanceisforwardcomparedtoastationaryfigure.Theforwardmomentum,alongwiththefluidmovementsofthearmsandlegs,keepstheforminbalance.Opposingarmsandlegs

Page 128: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

moveinunison(e.g.,theleftarmswingsforwardastherightlegmovesforward).Othercharacteristicsofthewalkingfigureincludeacentralformthatisuprightwitharmsandlegsthatarerelativelystraight.Astheweighttransfersbackandforth,onefootisalwaysincontactwiththepavement.

Page 129: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 130: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 131: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

WalkingFigure,FrontViewAsthefiguremovesforward,thearmsandlegsmovetopasstheweightbackandforthandtokeepthebalance.Thehipstiltinresponsetothechanges.Theshouldersmayappearangledduetotheswingingofthearmsandthemovementoftheframe.

Page 132: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

thearmsandthemovementoftheframe.

RunningWhenrunning,thefigurehasalineofbalancethatisfartherforwardthanwhenwalking.Momentumandbodyformkeepthefigurebalanced.Musclestightenandflexduetotheextrastrainuponthem.

Page 133: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 134: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 135: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

RunningFigure,SideViewThestanceofarunningfigureismoreextremeandexaggerated,withthetorsobentforward.Armsandlegsarebentmorethanwhenwalking.Astherightlegcarriesthebody’sweight,theleftlegbends,risesandcomesforwardinanticipationoftakingtheweightandpushingthebodyforward.Duringtheprocessofshiftingtheweightfromonelegtotheother,bothfeetmayleavecontactwiththepavement.

Page 136: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 137: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 138: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 139: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

RunningFigure,FrontViewWhenafigureisrunning,theanglesoftheshouldersandhipsaremorepronouncedthanthoseofawalkingfigure.Theweightisshiftedandthekneeisbroughtupandforward.

Page 140: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

walkingfigure.Theweightisshiftedandthekneeisbroughtupandforward.

Page 141: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MINI-DEMONSTRATION

Page 142: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MaleFigure,FrontViewThisisabasicfrontviewofanadultmalestandingupright.Forthisdemonstrationtheheadheightwillfirstbeestablishedatone-eighththetotalheightofthefigureandthenslightlyincreased,tomaketheheadincorrectproportion.

Materials10"×8"(25cm×10cm)medium-texturedrawingpaper2Bgraphitepencilkneadederaser

Page 143: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 144: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:PlacetheBasicProportionsWitha2Bpencil,sketchaverticalbalancelinetokeeptheimagestraight.Addhorizontallinesforthebaseofthefeet,topoftheheadandthecenterline.Sketchahorizontallinebetweenthetoplineandthecenterline,makingupone-fourththetotalheight.Sketchanotherhorizontallinebetweenthetoplineandthepreviousline,makingupone-eighththetotalheight.Addonemorehorizontallineslightlybelowthelastlinetouseforthesizeofthehead.Youcanuseaproportioningdevicetocheckthattheheightofthefigureisseven-and-a-halfheads.

Page 145: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:AddtheBasicShapesandLines

Page 146: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Addthebasicshapeoftheheadandlegs.Sketchhorizontallinesfortheshouldersandwaist.

Page 147: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 148: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddtheFeaturesAddthetorso,neckandhips.Sketchovalsfortheknees.Thebottomsofthekneesrestapproximatelyhalfwaybetweenthecenterlineandthebottomline.Sketchthearmsandhandswiththefingersrestinghalfwaybetweenthecenterlineandthelowerbottomoftheknees.Addthefeet.Addlinesfortheplacementoffacialfeatures.

Page 149: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 150: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:DeveloptheFormDevelopandrefinetheformandaddfeaturesincludingtheclothesandlinesfortheplacementoffacialfeatures.

Page 151: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 152: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:AddtheValuesEraseunwantedlinesandfinishthedrawingbyaddingthevalues.

Page 153: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MINI-DEMONSTRATION

Page 154: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FemaleFigure,SideViewTheproportionsofanadultfemalearesimilartothoseofthemalefigure.Thelegsofthefemalefiguremakeuphalfitsoverallheight,whichisequaltoseven-and-a-halftimestheheadheight.

Materials10"×8"(25cm×20cm)medium-texturedrawingpaper2Bgraphitepencilkneadederaser

Page 155: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:PlacetheBasicProportionsWitha2Bpencil,sketchaverticalbalancelinetokeeptheimagestraight.Addhorizontallinesforthebaseofthefeet,topoftheheadand

Page 156: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

straight.Addhorizontallinesforthebaseofthefeet,topoftheheadandaddacenterline.Sketchahorizontallinebetweenthetoplineandthecenterline,makingupone-fourththetotalheight.Sketchanotherhorizontallinebetweenthetoplineandthepreviousline,makingupone-eighththetotalheight.Onemorehorizontallineaddedslightlybelowthelastlinewillbeusedforthesizeofthehead.Aproportioningdevicecanbeusedtocheckthatseven-and-a-halfofthehead’ssizemakesuptheheightofthefigure.

Page 157: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:AddtheBasicShapesSketchtheformoftheheadwithastraightlineforthefrontoftheface;addtwoverticallinesforthethicknessofthetorso.Sketchcirclesforthe

Page 158: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

addtwoverticallinesforthethicknessofthetorso.Sketchcirclesfortheshouldersocketofthearmandforthekneewithattentiontotheirplacementinrelationtothebalancelines.Sketchtwoshorthorizontallines,oneforthewaistandanotherfortheplacementofthefingertips.

Page 159: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddtheFeaturesAddmoreformtothefrontandbackofthetorsoalongwiththeneck,arm,legsandfeet.Adddetails,includingthehandandlinesforthe

Page 160: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

arm,legsandfeet.Adddetails,includingthehandandlinesfortheplacementoffacialfeatures.

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Page 162: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:DeveloptheFormDevelopandrefinetheoverallformandadddetailsincludingfingers,clothesandlinesfortheplacementofthehairandfacialfeatures.

Page 163: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 164: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:AddtheValuesEraseunwantedlinesandfinishthedrawingbyaddingthevalues.

Page 165: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

BodyTypesChoosingmodelsforfiguredrawingisaboutcelebratingouruniquebodytypesandtheindividualpersonalitiesthatshinethrough.Manyofthefiguresinthisbookareeverydaypeople,andforthesakeofeducationwewilllookataverageproportionsasastandardtoworkfrom.

EverydayPeopleWeallsharesimilarcharacteristics.Thougheachofthesebodytypeslookdifferent,theyareproportionally

Page 166: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Weallsharesimilarcharacteristics.Thougheachofthesebodytypeslookdifferent,theyareproportionallyquitesimilar.Eachfigure’slegsmakeuphalfofitsheight.Eachoneisseven-and-a-halftimesitsheadheight.Noticethateventhelengthsofthearmsareconsistentwiththefingertipsrestingatthemiddleoftheupperlegwhenthebodyisrelaxed.

Age-AppropriateProportionsAschildrengrowintoadulthood,theirheadsgrowlittlecomparedtotheirbodies.Toddlersmaybefourheadshigh(one-quarteroftheirheightbeingtheirhead)andmaturetoseven-and-a-halfheadshighasanadult.Childrenhavewideheadsandchubbybodieswithshortarmsandshortlegs.Withyearsofgrowth,thelowerportionofthebodylengthensmorethantheupperportion.

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Page 168: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ComicBookandFantasyFiguresWemaybesousedtocomicbook,fantasyandfashionimagesthatwedon’tquestiontheirreality.However,whenweexaminetheirproportions,wecanseehowunrealistictheyare.Thesefigureshaveamazingproportionsthatarewaybeyondaveragebodyproportions.Themaleis

bulkywithflexedmusclesandbroadshouldersaccentuatedbyathinwaist.Thefemaleisslenderwithabnormallylonglegsandlargebreasts,alsoaccentuatedbyatinywaist.Thoughbothofthesefiguresaredrawnatseven-and-a-halfheadshigh,comicbookandfantasyfiguresmaybedrawnwithsmallerheadstomakethemeighttonineheadsinheight.Comparethesefigureswiththeotheradultfiguresinthischaptertofullycomprehendtheirunrealisticproportions.

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Page 170: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FashionFiguresFashiondrawingstretchesthefigurewithunnaturalproportionsforanappearancethatisthinandleggy.Thisfigureisnineheadsinheightwithlegsthatmakeupmorethanhalfoftheheight.

Page 171: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

HeadsandShouldersAswithallofthefeaturesofthefigure,theheadandshouldersrelyoncorrectproportionstolookrealistic.Rememberthatyoucanuseaproportioningdevicetoachievecorrectproportionsforyourdrawings.

Page 172: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

AdultFrontViewAdultheadproportionsaresimilarwithslightvariationsthatdisplayindividuality.Eyewidthcanbeusedasaunitofmeasurementtoworkouttheoverallproportionsofthehead,withtheheadbeingaboutseven

Page 173: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

asaunitofmeasurementtoworkouttheoverallproportionsofthehead,withtheheadbeingaboutseveneyewidthshighandfiveeyewidthswide.Thedistancebetweentheeyesisequaltothewidthofoneeye.Eyesarelocatedapproximatelyhalfway

betweenthedistanceofthetopoftheheadtothechin.Thetopoftheearslineupwiththeeyebrows,andthebottomoftheearslineupwiththeendofthenose.Thebaseofthenoseisaboutthesamewidthasthewidthoftheeyes.Thewidthofthemouthcanbe

drawnasthesamewidthasthecenterofthelefteyetothecenteroftherighteye.

MaleandFemaleFrontViewsMentypicallyhavelargerheadsthanwomen,aswellaslargernoses,earsandeyebrowsandsquarerjaws.Womentypicallyhavethickerlips,butotherwisetheyaregenerallysmallerandhavemoredelicatefeaturesthanmen.

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ChildrenFrontViewsChildren’sheadsaresmallerthanadults’;however,anadolescentmalemayhavethesamesizeheadasanadultfemale.Veryyoungchildrenhavewideheadsthatareproportionallylargeratthetopwitheyesthatareplacedwellbelowthecenterline.Thesizeoftheeyeschangeslittle,thoughtheyseembiggeronchildrenbecausetheirheadsaresmaller.

SideViewsWhenviewedfromtheside,noticethatthesizeoftheheaddoesn’tchangemuchfromyoungchildtoadult,althoughtheplacementandsizeofthefeaturesdochange.

Page 175: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

HeadThree-QuarterViewsStructurallinesfortheplacementofthefeaturesarethesameforthefrontandsideviewsaswellasthethree-quarterview.Whendrawingviewssuchasthese,itisimportanttobeconsciousofwhetheryou,theviewer,arelookingup,downorstraightatthesubject.

Page 176: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Neck,Shoulders,MusclesandBonesAswiththerestofthehumanbody,theneckandshouldersaremadeupofmusclesandbonesthatworktogethertoflexandmove.Therearetwoprominentsetsofmusclesintheneckandshoulderregion.Onesetattachesthebackofthe

headtothetopoftheshoulders.Theothersetextendsfromthesidesofthehead,behindtheears,wrappingdowntothetopofthefrontcenterofthechest,nearthepitoftheneck.Twohorizontalbonesextendoutwardinoppositedirectionsfromthepitofthenecktotheshouldersabovetheupperarmsockets.

AdultMaleNeck,FrontViewAman’sneck,atthefrontandsides,cangenerallyappearthickandmuscularwithvisiblemuscles.

Page 177: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

AdultFemaleNeck,FrontViewAwoman’sneckistypicallyslenderwithlessvisiblemuscles.

AdultMaleNeck,SideViewAman’sneckwhenviewedfromthesideanglestheheadforwardwithavisibleAdam’sapple.

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AdultFemaleNeck,SideViewAwoman’sneckwhenviewedfromthesidemaybemoreangledthanthemaleneck.

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MINI-DEMONSTRATION

Page 180: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FemaleHead,NeckandShouldersTakingtimetodetailthelightanddarkcontoursofthebonesandmusclesofthehead,neckandshouldersgivesthefiguredepthandalifelikequality.

Materials10"×8"(25cm×20cm)medium-texturedrawingpaper2Bgraphitepencilkneadederaser

STEP1:SketchtheBasicProportionsWitha2Bpencil,sketchshortlinestoplacetheouterproportionsoftheface,whichisseveneyewidthshighandslightlylessthanfiveeyewidthswide.Sketchaverticallinefromthecenterofthefacetobelowthe

Page 181: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

wide.Sketchaverticallinefromthecenterofthefacetobelowtheshoulders.Sketchahorizontallineforthetopoftheshoulders.

STEP2:FormtheMainShapesandAddtheFacialFeatureLinesAddlinestoformtheshapeofthehead,neckandshoulders.Addhorizontallinesfortheplacementoftheeyes,noseandmouth.

Page 182: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddMoreFeatureLinesAddmorelinestoestablishthewidthoftheeyes,noseandmouth.Addahorizontallinefortheplacementofthebrows,andcontinuethehorizontallineforthenoseacrosstheface.Theearswillgobetweenthesetwolines.

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STEP4:AddtheFacialFeaturesAddeyes,eyebrows,nose,mouth,lipsandears.

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STEP5:ShapetheHair,NeckandShouldersSketchtheshapeofthehairanddefinetheformoftheneckandshoulders.

Page 185: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:AddtheValuesEraseunwantedlinesandcompletethedrawingbyaddingthevalueswitha2Bpencil.

Page 186: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ArmsThearmsandhandsofthesubjectcanexpressbodylanguage,mood,attitudeandaction.Thedistanceofthearmandhand,fromshouldertoptothefingertips,islessthanthelengthofthelegs,whichishalfthetotalheightofthebody.Malearmsaregenerallymorebulkyandmuscular,whilewomen’saregenerallymoreslenderwithlessmuscledefinition.

Page 187: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 188: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ArmPortionsandMovementsTheupperarmislongerthantheforearm.Whenthehandisbroughtuptotheshoulder,itisnoticeablethattheupperarmisslightlylessthanthelengthoftheforearmandhand,tothefirstrowofknuckles.Thetipoftheelbowmovesforwardastheforearmisbroughtup.Thisisbecausethetipoftheelbowisactuallytheendoftheforearmbone,ratherthanthetipoftheupperarmbone.Theinsideknoboftheelbow,whichisnotvisiblefromthisview,isthetipoftheupperbone.Itchangespositiononlywhentheupperarmismoved.Whenrelaxedinadownwardposition,thearmisslightlybentattheelbow.

MuscleFormoftheArmTheformofthearmchangeswithitsposition.Whenthearmisbroughtup,themusclesarecontracted,causingtheinnermusclestohavecurvatureandform.Whenthearmisstraight,thetopmusclesarelengthenedandflattenout.

AFlipoftheWrist

Page 189: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Usuallywhenthewrististurnedsothethumbispositionedawayfromthebody,theelbowwillbeturnedintowardthebody.Whenthethumbisturnedintowardthebody,theelbowwillbetiltedoutawayfromthebody.

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Page 191: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 192: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ArmViewsandPosesThesubtledifferencesofformandshapearemorenoticeablewithcertainposesandviews.Forexample,whenthearmisflexed,themuscleformismoreaccentuated.

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Page 194: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ArmsandtheBodyArmbuildreflectsthebodytype.Apersonwithaslenderformwillhaveslenderarms,justasapersonwithamoremuscularformwillhavemusculararms

Page 195: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

HandsLikefacialexpressions,handshaveawayofexpressingmoods,suchasthreateningwithaclenchedfistorvulnerablewithanopenpalm.

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Page 197: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Fingers,KnucklesandWristThehandismadeupofbones,musclesandtendons.Observingthewaythefingers,knucklesandwristworktogetherwillincreaseyourabilitytodrawthesefeaturesofthehumanbody.Thewristandknuckles,shownwithanovalandcircles,allowflexibility.Thebonesofthewristareinthelowerportionofthehand,connectingthebonesofthehandtothebonesofthearm.Thefingerbonelengthsreduceproportionallyastheygooutward.Thethumbhasonelessbonethanthe

otherfingers,thushasonelessknuckle.Whenexaminedasgroupings,thebonesandknucklesarenotstraightacross,butlineupascurves,withthecurvesmorepronouncedastheygooutward.Thefingernailcuticlebeginshalfwaybetweentheknuckleandthefingertip.

HandandHeadProportionThelengthofthehandisequaltothedistanceofthechintotheupperforehead.Thedistanceofthewristtothetipofthethumbisequaltoabouthalftheheadheight.

Page 198: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

HandandArmProportionThehandmakesupmorethanathirdofthedistanceoftheforearmfromtheelbowtothefingertips.

Page 199: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Bones,Muscles,Tendons,VeinsandArteriesSomehandstendtobebulkyandbonywhereasothersaremoreslenderandgraceful.Besidesthebonesandmuscles,tendons,veinsandarteriesalsoinfluencethevisibleformofthehand.Thesefeaturescanbemademorenoticeablebyaddingvalues.

Page 200: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

CurvedRowofKnucklesHandscanbeblockedinbysketchingtherowsofknuckleswithcurvedlines.Notethatknucklesdonotnaturallylineupinstraightlines.

Page 201: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FingerGroupingsTomakeadrawingeasier,itiscommontoseehandswithfingersthataregroupedtogether.Simpledrawingsofhandslikethisshowthehandasanoutlinewithoutlinesseparatingthegroupedfingers.

TaperedWhenFlatWhenflattenedandviewedfromtheside,thehandtapersfromthewristtothefingertips.

Page 202: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MINI-DEMONSTRATION

Page 203: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

HandUsethesedemonstrationinstructionstotrysketchingyourownhand.Thestructuralsketchofthehandstartsasasimplemittenshape.Beforesketchingtheindividualfingers,blockinthegroupingsoftheknuckles.Ifyoupreferwiderpencillines,youcansketchwitha2Bpencilonmedium-texturesketchpaperratherthanthemechanicalpencilwithcopierpaperspecifiedinthematerialslist.

Materials11"×8 ⁄ "(28cm×22cm)copierpapermechanicalpencilkneadederaser

1 2

Page 204: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:ProportiontheFormWithamechanicalpencil,sketchtheouterproportionsofthepalm,indexfingerandthumboftheopenhand.

Page 205: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchthePlacementLinesSketchcurvedlinesfortheplacementofthefingertips,knucklesandskinbetweenthefingers.Thehandisrelaxed,sothefingersaren’tstraight.

Page 206: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:SketchtheThumb,Fingers,PalmandWristSketchlinesfortheindividualfingersandthumb.Completetheouterformofthepalmandaddlinesforthewrist.

Page 207: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:DeveloptheFormDeveloptheoverallformandaddstructuraldetailssuchaswrinklesandcreases.

Page 208: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:AddtheValuesUseakneadederasertoeraseunwantedlines,andaddthevalueswithamechanicalpenciltofinishthedrawing.Datethebackofyourdrawing.

Page 209: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FrontandBackDifferencesTheproportionsofthefrontofthehandcomparedtothebackmayappeardifferentbecauseofvisualdifferencesthatincludetheskinbetweenthefingersandtheformofthepalmatthebaseofthehand.

Page 210: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

LegsTaketimetostudyhowyourlegsandfeetareconnectedandformed.Yourfeetandhandsarealwayswithyou,soyouareneveratalossforsubjectmattertoobserveandsketch.Makinguphalftheadultbody’soverallheight,thelegsarecurvy,taperingin

widthastheyreachthefeet.

Page 211: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 212: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 213: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ProportionsoftheLegsTheupperlegislongerandthickerthanthelowerleg.Withtheupperlegfoldedagainstthelowerleg,itisnoticeablethatthelengthoftheupperlegisaboutthesamelengthasthelowerlegwhenincludingtheankleandheel.

Page 214: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 215: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 216: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ViewsandPosesTheupperleghasmusclessurroundingthebone.Thelowerleg,however,doesn’thavemusclescoveringthewholearea,leavingthefront/innersectionofthelowerlegtobedefinedbythebone.Becauseofthelackofmusclesurroundingtheknees,theirouterformisinfluencedbythebonesandtendons.Whenthelegisstraight,themusclesmayappearflatterandlesscurvedthanwhenbentandflexed.Whendrawingthelegs,takeintoconsiderationwhetherthemusclesarestretched,flexedorrelaxed,allofwhichinfluencethelegs’appearance.Thekneehasnoticeableprotrusionsatthefront.Thekneecap,alongwiththeligamentthatconnectsitto

thelowerleg,isprominentwhenthelegisstraight.

Page 217: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FeetWithnoeasygeometricpatternsvisible,feetarechallengingtodraw.Thispartofthebodyhaslittlefatormuscle,whichcausestheouterformtobedeterminedbythebonesandtendons.Thestructureofthefeetissimilartothehands,onlyelongated.Thebonesofthetoes,likefingers,areproportionallyreducedinsizeastheygooutward.

Foot,HeadandHandProportionsThelengthofthefootisslightlylongerthantheheightoftheheadandconsiderablylongerthanthelengthofthehand.

Page 218: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 219: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FeetandAnklesThemostdominantfeatureoftheanklesistheknobsthatprotrudefromthesides.Theknobsaretheendsofthelegbones,whichmeetthebonesoftheankles(drawnasovals)andallowmovementofthefoot.Noticethattheseknobsarenotstraightacrossfromeachother,butangled.Whenviewedfromtheback,anotherfeatureoftheankleistheverticaltendonsthatconnecttheheelbonestothelowerlegmuscles.

Page 220: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 221: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ViewsandPosesThetoes,ballofthefoot,archandheelareallaspectsofthefoottoobservewhenyouarestudyinghowtodrawthefoot.Doesthefootthatyouarestudyinghaveanarch,andcanthisarchbeseenontheoutsideofthefoot?

Page 222: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MINI-DEMONSTRATION

Page 223: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FeetIt’stimetogetcomfortable,putyourfeetupandrelaxforthisdemonstration.Propyourfeetuponareclinerorottomanandfollowthesestepstodrawthem.Drawbothfeetatthesametime,notindividually.Theyappearsymmetrical.Forthisdemothelightsourceisdirectlyfromtheright,sopositioningalampontherightsideofyourfeetwouldbeideal.

Materials8"×10"(20cm×25cm)medium-texturedrawingpaper2Bgraphitepencilkneadederaser

Page 224: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:ProportionBothFeetWitha2Bpencil,sketchtwohorizontallines,oneforthetopofthebigtoesandtheotherfortheheels.Sketchfourverticallines,twofortheoutersidesofthefeetandtwofortheinsidesofthefeet.

STEP2:SketchtheOuterFormsoftheFeetandToesSketchcurvedlinesfortheoutertipsofthetoesandforthelowersidesofthefeet.Addtwocurvedlinesforthealignmentofwherethetoesmeetthefeet.

Page 225: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddLinesfortheToesandLegsandDeveloptheFormAddlinesfortheindividualtoesaswellaslinesforthelegs.Developtheouterformsofthefeet.

Page 226: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:AddtheStructuralDetailsAddthestructuraldetailsincludingtoenailsandlinestodistinguishtheshadows.

Page 227: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:AddtheValuesEraseunwantedlineswithakneadederaserandaddthevalueswitha2Bpenciltocompletethedrawing.Placethedateonthebackofyourdrawing.

Page 228: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ClothesThoughclothescovertheform,theyarepartoftheoverallfigureandexpressthepersonalityofthewearer.Whetherthecostumeissimpleorelaborate,thematerialisaffectedbythelightsourcethatilluminatesthefolds,causinghighlightsandshadowsthatgivedepthtotheform.

FOLDSSeldomisclothingflatandformless;instead,itisfulloffolds.Foldsoccurwheretheclothinggathersoriscreased,creatingalandscapeofconcaveandconvexforms.Whenaddedtoafiguredrawing,foldscancreateasenseoffluidityandmotiontothesubject.Concavefoldsgoinward,asrecesses,whereasconvexfoldsprotrudeoutward.

Whenfoldsarebuncheduptogether,suchaswherethekneebends,theclothingmayappearaswavesofconcaveandconvexmaterial.Concavefolds,drawnwithdarkrecesses,appeartohavedepth,whileconvex

folds,drawnwithhighlights,causethematerialtoappeartobecomingforward.

Page 229: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

TheGreatCover-UpThebody’sframesupportstheoutercoveringoftheclothesapersoniswearing.Althoughaffectedbygravity,anarticleofclothingwon’tjusthangonapersonasitwouldifitwereonahangerinthecloset.Rather,thematerialmoldsaroundtheshapeofthefigure,respondingtothepositionorposeofthefigure.Lookatthearmsleeveoftheclothingyouarewearingatthemomentyouarereadingthis.Noticethevaluesofthehighlightsandshadows.Nowchangethepositionofyourarmandseethosehighlightsandshadowschangeshape.

Page 230: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ConcaveandConvexInwardfoldsareconcaveandoutwardfoldsareconvex.Concavefoldsappearasdark,shadowedrecesses.Convexfolds,beingforward,appearlight.Simplecurtainfoldsareanexampleofclotharrangedinaseriesofconcaveandconvexfolds.

FollowtheLightWheneverdrawing,beconsciousoftheinfluencethatthelightsourcehasonthesubjectyouareobserving.Thelightsourcewillaffecttheappearanceofthesubject,whetheritlooksflatorhaswell-definedhighlightsandshadows.SeeLightEffectsinChapter1.

Page 231: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MINI-DEMONSTRATION

Page 232: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ClothAsimplewhiteclothisthesubjectforthisdemonstrationexaminingthesubtletiesoffolds.Tryyourownclothstudysetupbydrapingmaterialontheseatofachairandclippingittothebackofthechairsoitdoesn’tslipduringyourstudysession.Thelightforthisdemoiscomingfromtheupperleft.

Materials10"×8"(25cm×20cm)medium-texturedrawingpaper2Bpencilkneadederaserchairwhiteclothmaterialbulldogclip

Page 233: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:SketchtheBasicShapeWitha2Bpencil,sketchtheouterformoftheclothwithsimplelines.

Page 234: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:AddtheFoldsSketchlinesforthemostnoticeablefolds.

Page 235: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:RefinetheFormandAddtheDetailsRefinetheoverallformandaddstructuraldetailsandsomeshadowlines.Eraseunwantedlineswithakneadederaser.

Page 236: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:AddtheLighterValuesWitha2Bpencil,addthelightervaluestothedrawing.

Page 237: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:AddtheMiddleValuesAddthemiddlevaluesbybuildingupthepencilstrokes.

Page 238: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:AddtheDarksContinuebuildingupthepencilstrokestoadddarkervalues,givingdepthandformtothesubject.Useakneadederasertolightenareasbyliftinggraphite.Datethebackofyourcompleteddrawing.

Page 239: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShirtsandPants

SHIRTSShirtmaterialhasfewerfoldswhenthearmisstraightthanwhenthearmisbent.Whenthearmisbentattheelbow,theshirtgathersandbunchesupattheinsideofthearmbutispulledattheundersideofthearm.

PANTSThecharacteristicsofapairofpantsaresimilartoshirtsbecausetheyarealsoinfluencedbythepullofgravity,thebody’sformandthelightilluminatingthesubject.

Page 240: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 241: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShirtStructureObservehowthebody’sformunderneathaffectstheoutershapeoftheshirt.Noticethattheshirt’sformisdifferentwhereitisincontactwiththebodycomparedtowhereitisawayfromthebody.

Page 242: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 243: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShirtValuesThelightsourceaswellasthebody’sformunderneathinfluencethevaluesoftheshirt.

Page 244: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 245: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

PantsStructureWiththestraightleg,thematerialhangsdown,makinglittlecontactwiththebody.Forthebentleg,thematerialbunchesupbehindandbelowtheknee.

Page 246: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 247: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

PantsValuesWithvaluesadded,thefoldsandformofthepantshaveamorerealisticappearanceofdepth.

Page 248: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

DressesDressescanbeshortandtightorlongandflowing.Somedressesaresobigandfullthattheirouterformisentirelydifferentthantheunderlyingbodystructure.Thoughthebodystructuremaynotbenoticeableunderneaththematerial,itisimportanttoremembertheproportionsofthebodyfortheoverallstructuralfoundationofthefiguredrawing.

Page 249: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FullDressSketch

Page 250: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FullDressSketchAroughsketchofthebodyformunderneaththedressisdonetohelpplanthebody’sproportions.Withthissketch,theheadwascountedouttobeseven-and-a-halftimestheheightofthebody.Noticethatthedressgoesoutwardaroundthehips,startingslightlyabovethewaistline.

Page 251: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 252: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FullDressDrawingThelowerportionofthisperioddressshowsnoneofthecontoursofthebodyunderneath,thoughcorrectproportionsofthebodywereimportanttoestablishthecorrectheightandplacementofthewaistforthefigure.

Page 253: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShortDressSketch

Page 254: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShortDressSketchThisdressisshortandloosefromthewaistdown.Thoughhiddenfromview,theupperlegsareroughlysketched,aswellascirclesfortheplacementofthekneestoensurecorrectproportionsofthefigureandthedress.

Page 255: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 256: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShortDressDrawingProperproportionsandbelievablefoldsofthedressareattainedbyacorrectsketchofthebody.

Page 257: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MINI-DEMONSTRATION

Page 258: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShirtThesimpleT-shirtinthisdemonstrationhasnumerousfolds.Theshapeisinfluencedbythebodystructureunderneath,whichhasthefigure’srightshoulderforwardcomparedtohisleftshoulder.Youmaywanttolightlysketchtheformofthebodybeforesketchingtheshirt,thoughitisn’tnecessaryforthecompletionofthisdrawing.Thelightsourceiscomingfromtheupperright,causingtheshirttobedarkerontheleftsideofthebody.Useavaluescale(seeGlossary)togaugeyourlightsanddarks.

Materials10"×8"(25cm×20cm)medium-texturedrawingpaper2Bgraphitepencilkneadederaser

Page 259: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:SketchtheProportionsWitha2Bpencil,sketchlinesforthetopofthehead,chin,shouldersandshirttail.Sketchtwoshortverticallinestoestablishthewidthoftheshoulders.

Page 260: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchtheMainShapesSketchanovalfortheshapeoftheheadandlinesfortheshoulders,neckandsidesoftheshirt.

Page 261: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:RefinetheFormRefinetheouterformofthefigure.

Page 262: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:AddtheStructuralDetailsAddthestructuraldetailsincludingthefolds.Drawingthefaceandarmsisoptional.Eraseunwantedlines.

Page 263: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:AddtheLightandMiddleValuesWitha2Bpencil,addthelightandmiddlevaluestotheshirt.Thelightisfromtheupperright,sotheindividualfoldsaredarkerontheleft.

Page 264: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:AddtheDarksandDetailsBuildupthepencillinestocreatethedarksandadddetailstotheshirt.Addhighlightsasneededbyliftinggraphitewithakneadederaser.Datethebackofyourdrawing.

Page 265: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MINI-DEMONSTRATION

Page 266: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

PantsThisdemonstrationisafrontviewofamanwearingbluejeans.Withtheleftlegangled,therightlegsupportsmostofthebody’sweight.Notethattherightfootisunderthewaistandnotofftotheside.Useavaluescaletomakesureyouareusingafullrangeoflightsanddarksinyourdrawing.Thelightsourceisfromtheupperright,causingtheleftsidesofthepantlegstobeshadowed.

Materials10"×8"(25cm×20cm)medium-texturedrawingpaper2Bgraphitepencilkneadederaser

Page 267: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:SketchtheProportionsWitha2Bpencil,sketchhorizontallinesforthepants’waistandshoebottoms.Sketchverticallinestomarkthewidthofthewaist.

Page 268: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchthePantLegsSketchlinesfortheoutershapesofthepantlegs.Noticehowbothlegsareangled.

Page 269: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:DeveloptheFormDevelopthepreviouslysketchedformtoincludesomeoftheformsofthefolds.

Page 270: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:AddtheStructuralDetailsAdddetailstothestructureincludingthebeltandfolds.Eraseunwantedlines.

Page 271: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:AddtheLightandMiddleValuesWitha2Bpencil,addthelightandmiddlevalues,darkeningtheleftsidesofthepantlegs.

Page 272: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:AddtheDarksandDetailsCompetethedrawingwiththedarksanddetailsandbyremovingsomeofthegraphitewithakneadederasertocreatehighlights.Datethebackofthedrawing.

Page 273: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

HatsandHeadgearThoughtheycoverthehead,hatscantakeonashapeoftheirownthatisnotmoldedtotheactualshapeofthehead.Itisgoodtodrawthefoundationoftheshapeoftheheadbeforeaddingthedetailsoftheheadgeartoyourfiguredrawing.Thisisespeciallyimportantsoyoucanaccuratelyproportiontheheightofthepersonandthefacialfeatures,ensuringthatthemeasurementsoftheheightdonotincludetheheightofthetopoftheheadgearandensuringthattheeyesareplacedcorrectlyontheface.

TopHatSketchthestructureofthehatinitsentiretytoensuretheaccuracyofthedrawing.Thestructurealongwiththevaluesaddedtothetopportionofthehatcreateitscylindricalform.

Page 274: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

GreekFisherman’sHatTheclothportionofthishatformsaroundtheheadtomakeauniqueshape.

InterestingHatsHatscanexpressthepersonalityofthewearerandaddinteresttoadrawing.

Page 275: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ShoesandBootsTheoutershapeofshoesfollowstheformofthefeetforthemostpart.Thoughitmaynotbenecessarytodrawthefeetinsidetheshoes,understandingtheformofthefeetisessentialtodrawingtheshoes.

Page 276: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

DressShoesThissketchwiththedrawingshowshowtheformoftheshoesisinfluencedbytheshapeofthefeet.

Page 277: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 278: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FootwearEverywhereFootwearcanvaryandcanbeasuniqueasthewearer.Manytimesapersonalityaspectofthewearershowsupinherchoiceofshoes.

PumpedUpHighheelsorpumpscanchangetheappearanceofthefeet,anklesandlegs.Withoutpumps,thefeetareflattothepavement.Whentheshoeshaveaheelthatishigherthanthefrontofthefoot,theanklesandlegslooklongerandtakeonadifferentshapethanwhenflat-footed.

Page 279: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

PostureandBodyLanguageTheattitudeofapersoniscommunicatedthroughherbodylanguage,notjustherfacialexpressions.

Page 280: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 281: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 282: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 283: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 284: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

CapturingtheMoodAperson’spostureandposecancommunicatedifferentmoods,suchasangry,victorious,pensiveorfearful.

Page 285: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

SportsActionPosesThestudyofsportsactionposeswillhelpyoudevelopyourfiguredrawingskills,evenifyouaren’tasportsfan.

Page 286: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 287: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 288: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 289: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 290: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

CapturetheMomentSportsandactionposescancapturethemovementofthefigure.Whiletheseactionposeslooknatural,iftheyweretobeperceivedasstationary,someofthemmightappearoff-balance.

Page 291: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

CHAPTER3

Let’sDrawPeople!

Ineachofthedemonstrationsinthischapteryouwillbeginwithastructuralsketchandthenaddvaluestocreatethefinisheddrawing.Whendevelopingthestructuralsketch,startwithlightandloosepencilstrokes,darkeningthelineworkasyoubecomemoreconfidentinyourexpressionoftheimage.Atthisstage,leavingincorrectpencilstrokesratherthanerasingthemcanguideyouindeterminingthecorrectplacementofthestructurallines.Refertothemini-demonstrationsforstep-by-stepinstructionsofindividualsubjectsasyouworkthroughtheselessons.Takeprideinyourwork.Itisuniqueandsoareyou.Signanddateyour

sketchesanddrawingssoyouareabletoseeaprogressionofyourskillsovertime.Also,byviewingyourartworkatalaterdate,youwillnotbeasinfluencedbyyourinitialexpectations,andyoumayhavearenewedappreciationforit.Photographpeoplesoyouwillhavereferencematerialtosketchathome.

Becausesomepeoplebecomestiffwhentheyrealizeyou’regoingtophotographthem,considertakingtheirpicturewhiletheyarerelaxedandinteractingwithothersaroundthem.Youwillhavesomefriendsandfamilywhomakenaturalmodels.Askthesewonderfulpeopletoposeforyouwhileyousketchthem.Remembertoallowthemtoposeincomfortablepositionsthatwon’tputastrainontheirbodiesastheykeepstillforyou,andtakeaphotooftheposesoyoucanworkonthefiguredrawingafterthemodelingsessionisover.

Page 292: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STREETPERFORMERSGraphitepencilondrawingpaper11"×14"(28cm×36cm)

ThinkforYourselfDon’tjustduplicatethematerialinthisbook—putintopracticewhatyou’velearned.Considerthestructureofthefigureandtheformoftheclothes.Noticethevalues,comparingthemtoavaluescalewhileyouconsidertheplacementofthelightsourceandtheshadowsofyoursubject.Observeforyourselfandcreateyourowncompositionsasyouworkthroughthisbook.

Page 293: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

CommonMistakesForthebeginner,it’seasytomisjudgetheplacementofthelinesforadrawing,especiallywithsomuchinformationtocomprehend.Hereareafewcommonmistakestowatchforandavoidwhendrawingfigures.

HeadMisproportionsTheeyesaretoohighontheface.Theeyesfortheaverageadultareapproximatelyatthecenterwhenmeasuringtheheadfromtoptobottom.Drawingtheeyesinthewrongplacethrowsofftheplacementoftheotherfeatures.

Page 294: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ProperHeadProportionsProperproportionsoftheadultheadhavetheeyesplacedatthecenter,allowingtheotherfacialfeaturestobeintheircorrectpositions.RefertoChapter2formoredetailedinformationaboutcorrectheadproportions.

Page 295: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 296: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

FigureMisproportionsTheheadandfigureareproportionallyincorrectatsix-and-ahalfheads(ratherthanseven-and-a-half).Thelegsarealsoshortlegs(theyshouldmakeuphalfofthetotalheight).Thesemisproportionsmaketheadultfigurelookchildlike.

Page 297: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 298: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ProperFigureProportionsProperproportionsoftheadultfigurewillmeasurethelegstomakeuphalfoftheheightofthefigure.RefertothebeginningofChapter2formoredetailedinformationaboutcorrectfigureproportions.

Difficult-to-RecognizeShapesWhenviewedasasilhouette,thissubjectisdifficulttocomprehend.Therecognitionofthesubjectreliesonthedetailsofthesubject,ratherthanonitsshape.

Easier-to-RecognizeShapes

Page 299: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Easier-to-RecognizeShapesBychangingtheangleofthesubject,boththedrawinganditssilhouetteformareeasiertoidentify.Together,theouterformandthedetailsenhanceeachothertobringclaritytothedrawing.

Page 300: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

TheProfessorForthestructuralsketchofthissubject,firstproportionthefigurefullyclothed,thensketchinthebodythatissupportingthoseclothes.Thiswillensureproperplacementandproportionsofthefeatures.Asforthebalanceofthefigure,theweightisequallydistributedtobothlegs

sothatthecenterlinerestsbetweenhisfeet.Thelightsourceiscomingfromtheupperleftandnoticeablyaffectsthehat,

face,coatandpants.Remembertouseaslipsheet(seeGlossary)torestyourhandonwhile

drawingtopreventsmearingthegraphiteonthepapersurface.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2Bgraphite,6Bgraphite,8BgraphiteOtherSupplies:kneadederaserOptionalSupplies:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)fine-ormedium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper,straightedge,tracingpaper

RelatedInterests

LightEffectsHandsHatsandHeadgear

Page 301: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 302: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:PlacetheBasicPortionsUsinga2Bpencil,sketchshorthorizontallinesforthetopofthehatandabaselinewheretheheelsoftheshoesrest.Sketchalineforthechinandalineforthetopofthehead,whichishiddenbythehat.Sketchacenterlinehalfwaybetweenthetopoftheheadandthebaseline.Thelegswillbesketchedinbetweenthecenterlineandthebaseline.Addaverticallineasthelineofbalance.

Page 303: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 304: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchtheHeadandTorsoSketchanovalfortheshapeofthehead.Sketchahorizontallineforthetopoftheshouldersandverticallinesforthewidthofthetorso.

Page 305: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddtheBasicShapesoftheArms,Hands,LegsandFeetContinuingwiththe2Bpencil,sketchbasicshapes.Addthearmsand

Page 306: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Continuingwiththe2Bpencil,sketchbasicshapes.Addthearmsandhandswithattentiontotheanglesofthearmsandtheplacementofthehands.Addthelegsandfeettothebottomhalfofthefigureinasimilarmanner.

Page 307: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 308: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:DeveloptheFormoftheBodySketchsomeoftheformofthebody,includingtheneck,arms,hands,kneesandlegs.

Page 309: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 310: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:SketchtheClothesDeveloptheformofthehat,coatandpants.Addlinesforthecane,whichyoucansketchinusingastraightedge.

Page 311: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 312: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:AddandRefinetheDetailsStartaddingdetailsthroughoutthesketch,includinglinesforthefeaturesofthefaceandrefiningtheformsoftheclothes.

WhichPenciltoUseThroughoutthesedemonstrations,continueworkingwiththepencildescribedinthepreviousstepsunlessanotherpencilissuggested.

Page 313: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 314: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:AddMoreDetails,EraseUnwantedLinesorTraceorTransfertheImageWitha2Bpencil,continueaddingdetailsincludingfoldsandshadowlines.Eraseunwantedlinesifworkingdirectlyonthedrawingpaper.Ifyouareworkingonsketchpaper,traceortransfertheimageontodrawingpaper,omittingunwantedlines.Addlinesforthecastshadowofthefigureatthelowerrightofthescene.

Page 315: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 316: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:AddtheValuesWitha2Bpencil,addthelightandmiddlevaluesthroughoutthedrawing.Avoidgoingtoodarkatthisstageoryoumaylosethedetailandfoldlinesunderneaththeappliedpencilstrokes.

Page 317: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 318: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP9:AddtheDarksWithan8Bpencil,addthedark,shadowedregions.Whereoneformmaybecomelostbecauseitisinfrontofanequallydarkform,considerlighteninganedge.Youcandothistotheedgeofthehatbrimandalsothesleevethatisinfrontofthecoat.

DrawingWithaFullRangeofValuesRemembertoputyourvaluescaletousebycomparingthevaluesonthevaluescalewiththatofyoursubjectandalsotoyourdrawingsothatyouwillcreatearealistic-lookingmasterpiece.

Page 319: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 320: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ProfessorAlbionGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

STEP10:AddtheDarksandDetails,MakeAdjustmentsWitha6Bpencil,addthedarksanddetailsthroughoutthedrawing.Ifneeded,makeadjustmentsbylighteningsomeareaswiththekneadederaser.Signthefrontofyourdrawingandwritethedateontheback.

Page 321: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ToddlerWithWateringCanChildrenofthisagehavethatendearingqualitythatshowswonder,curiosityandinnocence.Simpleprops,suchasthiswateringcan,addinterestandcanaddtothestoryofthescene.Thisdrawingisinprofilewiththelightsourcecomingfromtheupperright.

Youcandrawitasitappears,withouthavingtoplanandsketchthebodystructurebeneaththeclothes.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2Bgraphite,6BgraphiteOtherSupplies:kneadederaser,OptionalSupplies:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)fine-ormedium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper

RelatedInterests

BodyTypesHeadsandShouldersClothes

Page 322: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 323: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:DeterminetheProportionsWitha2Bpencil,determinetheoverallproportionsbysketchingaverticallineforthefrontofthebody,thenaddinghorizontallines,oneforthetopoftheheadandanotherforthebottomofthechin.Usingthatdistanceasaunittomeasureby,thetotalheightisslightlymorethanthree-and-a-halfheads,andthebodythicknessisslightlylessthanonehead.Sketchshortlinestoplacetheseproportions.

Page 324: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 325: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:FormtheHead,BodyandLegsWithcurvedlinesratherthananoval,formtheheadwiththeverticallinerightofcenter.Addacurvedlineforthebodyandanotherlineforthelegs.

Page 326: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 327: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddLinesfortheHands,Arms,LegsandFeetContinuingwitha2Bpencil,sketchlinesforthegeneralformofthehandsandarmswithregardtotheirpositionsinrelationtotheotherelements.Addlinestodistinguishthepantlegsandforthefrontoftheshoes.

Page 328: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 329: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:SketchthePlacementLinesfortheFace,Fingers,ShirtandWateringCanSketchlinesfortheplacementoftheeyes,noseandear.It’simportanttoplacetheselinescorrectlyforthedrawingtohavetheappearanceofatwo-year-old.Addlinesfortheprominentfingers,wristandshirttail.Addlinesfortheouterproportionsofthewateringcan.

Page 330: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 331: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:DeveloptheFormDeveloptheformoftheface,hands,arm,shoes,clothesandwateringcan.Startaddingthemostnoticeablefoldsandfeaturessuchasthepantspocket.

Page 332: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 333: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:AddMoreDetails,EraseUnwantedLinesorTraceorTransfertheImageWitha2Bpencil,adddetailsincludingfolds,facialfeaturesandstripestotheshirt.Eraseunwantedlinesifworkingdirectlyonthedrawingpaper.Ifworkingonsketchpaper,traceortransfertheimageontodrawingpaper,leavingoutunwantedlines.

Page 334: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:AddtheFacialDetailsThesubtleformssuchasthecurvesofthenoseandnosebridgeandthepointoftheupperlipareallpartoftheprofileoftheface.Bepatientandtakeyourtimetodevelopthedetails.

Page 335: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

takeyourtimetodevelopthedetails.

Page 336: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 337: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:AddtheLightValuesWitha2Bpencil,addthelightvaluestothefeatures,keepingsomeareaswhitesuchasaroundthetopoftheheadandthetoppartsofthewateringcan.Theshirtwillbedarkwithwhitestripes.However,youmayfinditeasiertodrawtheshirtlightwithdarkstripes.

Page 338: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 339: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP9:AddtheDarks:Witha6Bpencil,addthedarkstoareassuchastheshirtandpantsandtheholeinthetopofthewateringcan.Addingthemiddlevaluesbeforethedarkvaluesmaycausethedetailandfoldlinestobecomelost.

Page 340: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 341: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP10:AddtheMiddleValuesWitha2Bpencil,addthemiddlevaluesthroughoutthedrawing.

Page 342: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 343: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

TheKidWiththeWateringCanGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

STEP11:AddtheDetailsandMakeAdjustmentsWith2Band6Bpencils,adddetailsthroughout,blendingthedifferentvaluessotheytransitionfromonetoanothersmoothly.Lightenareas,ifneeded,withakneadederaser.Signyourdrawingonthefrontandwritethedateontheback.

Page 344: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

TheCavalierTheanglesoftheheadandbodydisplaytheperspectiveofthisfigure,especiallyevidentwiththeplacementofthefeet.Byobservingtheshadow,youcandeterminethatthelightsourceisdirectlycomingfromtheupperleft.Thoughonlythehiltoftheswordisvisible,itiseasilyrecognizedbecauseofthesword’sshadow.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2Bgraphite,6BgraphiteOtherSupplies:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper,kneadederaser

RelatedInterests

LinearPerspectiveClothes

Page 345: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 346: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:PlacetheBasicProportionsWitha2Bpencilsketchaverticalline,whichwillbethelineofbalancegoingfromthepitofthenecktothespacebetweenthefeet.Sketchshorthorizontallinesfortheplacementofthetopofthehead,forwardtoes,chin,distanttoesandcenterofthefigure.

Page 347: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 348: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchtheHeadandWidthoftheBodySketchtheformoftheheadbetweenthetoptwohorizontallineswithattentiontoitsplacementinrelationtothebalanceline.Addtwoverticallinestoindicatethefullestwidthofthebody.

Page 349: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 350: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddtheShapesIncludingHands,ArmsandLegsContinuingwitha2Bpencil,sketchinovalsfortheshapesofthehands,linesforthearmsandtheslopeoftheshoulders.Addangledlinesforliningupthetoes,kneesandboottopsinperspective.Notethattheforwardfootlookslargerbecauseitisclosertotheviewerthanthedistantfoot.

Page 351: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 352: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:StartDevelopingtheFeaturesStarttodevelopthearmsandsleeve,legs,feetandcirclesfortheknees.Sketchalinefortheloweredgeofthevestjustabovethecenterline.

Page 353: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 354: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:ContinueDevelopingtheFeaturesContinuetodevelopthevest,distantbootandpantsattheknees.Sketchlinesfortheplacementofthefacialfeatures.

Page 355: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 356: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:RefinetheFormandStartAddingtheDetailsRefinetheformthroughoutandstartaddingdetailsincludingthemug,swordhilt,rose,hairandfacialfeatures.Addtheshadowonthepavementtotherightofthefigure.

Page 357: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 358: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:AddMoreDetailsandEraseUnwantedLinesorTransfertheSketchWitha2Bpencil,continuetoadddetailstotheface,handsandclothing.Eraseunwantedlinesifworkingdirectlyonthedrawingpaper.Ifyouusedsketchpaperforyourstructuralsketch,traceortransfertheimageontodrawingpaper,omittingunwantedlines.

Page 359: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 360: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:AddtheLighterValuesWitha2Bpencil,addvaluestothelighterregionsofthefaceandtheclothes.Atthisstage,avoidgoingdarkwiththepencillinesbecauseyoudon’twanttolosethestructurallinesyouhavepreviouslysketched.

Page 361: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 362: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP9:AddtheMiddleValuesGraduallydarkenthefeaturesandaddthemiddlevalueswitha2Bpencil.

Page 363: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 364: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP10:AddtheDarksWitha6Bpencil,addthedarksthatarenoticeabletotheface,hairandclothes.

Page 365: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 366: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

DonJuanGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

STEP11:AddtheDetailsandMakeAdjustmentsWith2Band6Bpencils,darkenareassuchastheshadowedregionsandaddthedetails.Makeadjustmentsusingakneadederasertolightenareasifneeded.Signthefrontandwritethedateonthebackofthedrawing.

Page 367: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

DancerSittingWewilluseproportioningandaligningtechniquesforthisdrawingtoensureaccurateplacementofthefeatures.Fordrawingssuchasthis,itcanbehelpfultodrawcirclestoplacethekneesandelbowsduringtheprocessofthestructuralsketch.Thelightsourceiscomingfromtheupperleft.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2Bgraphite,6BgraphiteOtherSupplies:kneadederaserOptionalSupplies:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper

RelatedInterests

Blocking-InProportioningAligning

Page 368: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 369: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:PlacetheBasicProportionsWitha2Bpencil,sketchhorizontallinesforthetopoftheheadandforthetoes.Alsoaddlinesforthechin,shouldersandhip.Next,addverticallinestoindicatethewidthoftheshouldersandthesideofthedistantknee.

Page 370: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 371: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchtheHead,TorsoandJointsSketchanovalfortheheadandcurvedlinesforthefrontandbackofthetorso.Addcirclesfortheplacementofthejointsoftheupperarms,shoulders,elbows,hipandknees.Theseshapeswillhelpintheplacementofthearmsandlegs.

Page 372: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 373: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddtheArms,Legs,NeckandShouldersWithsimplelines,sketchinthebasicshapesofthearms,legs,neckandshouldersusinga2Bpencil.

Page 374: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 375: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:SketchShapesfortheHandsandFeetandLinesfortheFeaturesSketchbasicshapesforthehandsandfeet.Addlinesfortheplacementofthefacialfeatures,chestandtheseat.

Page 376: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 377: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:DeveloptheFeaturesDevelopthehands,feet,face,chestandclothes.

Page 378: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 379: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:RefinetheFormandAddtheDetailsRefinetheoverallformofthefigureandaddthedetailsincludingfingers,slippersandshadows.

Page 380: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 381: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:AddMoreDetailsandEraseUnwantedLinesorTransfertheSketchWitha2Bpencil,addmoredetailssuchasshadowlines.Ifworkingdirectlyonthedrawingpaper,eraseanyunwantedlines.Ifyouusedsketchpaperforyourstructuralsketch,traceortransfertheimageontodrawingpaper,leavingoutanyunwantedlines.

Page 382: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 383: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:AddtheLighterValuesWitha2Bpencil,beginaddingvaluesstartingwiththelighterregionsofthehead,shoulders,arms,legsandseat.

Page 384: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 385: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP9:AddtheMiddleValuesGraduallyaddthemiddlevalues,darkeningfeaturestodevelopthecontoursofthefigurewitha2Bpencil.

Page 386: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP10:AddtheDarkValuesWitha6Bpencil,startdarkeningthehair,clothesandshadowsofthe

Page 387: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Witha6Bpencil,startdarkeningthehair,clothesandshadowsofthedrawing.

Page 388: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

IreneGraphitepencilondrawingpaper

Page 389: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Graphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

STEP11:AddtheDetailsandMakeAdjustmentsContinueaddingthedarksandaddanyadditionaldetailsandadjustmentsusing2Band6Bpencils.Lightenanyareasasneeded,liftinggraphitewithakneadederaser.Signthefrontofthedrawingandwritethedateontheback.

Page 390: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

GirlReadingaBookThelightsourceforthissceneiscomingfromtheupperright,castingashadowfromthefiguretothelowerleft.Thefigureisinperspectivewiththeviewerlookingslightlydownatathree-quarterviewatthegirl.Achild’sproportionsaredifferentfromanadult’sproportions.Noticethatherheadislargerincomparisontothebody.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2Bgraphite,6BgraphiteOtherSupplies:kneadederaserOptionalSupplies:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper

RelatedInterests

Blocking-InProportioningLinearPerspectiveFolds

Page 391: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:BeginPlacingtheBasicProportionsWitha2Bpencil,sketchhorizontallinesfortheplacementofthetopofthehead,lowerknee,chinanddistantforearm.Sketchverticallinesfor

Page 392: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

thewidthofthehead,linesforthewidthofthearmsandalineforthedistantknee.

Page 393: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:AddtheHead,Shoulders,ArmsandKneesSketchthebasicformsofthehead,shoulders,armsandcirclesfortheknees.

Page 394: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:SketchtheLegsandBookContinuingwitha2Bpencil,sketchthebasicformsofthelegsaroundthekneesandangledlinesforthefoundationalformofthebook.

Page 395: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:SketchtheHair,Hands,FootandClothesSketchtheformsofthehair,handsandfoot.Sketchthebasicformsoftheclothes.

Page 396: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

theclothes.

STEP5:SketchPlacementLinesfortheFace,Fingers,Toes,

Page 397: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ClothesandBookSketchlinesfortheplacementofthefacialfeatures,fingersandtoes.Sketchlinesforthefoldsoftheclothingandthebookanditspages.

Page 398: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:RefinetheFormandAddtheDetailsRefinetheoverallformandaddthedetailsincludingthefacialfeatures.

Page 399: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:AddMoreDetailsandEraseUnwantedLinesorTransfertheSketchWitha2Bpencil,addmoredetailstothehairandfolds.Eraseany

Page 400: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Witha2Bpencil,addmoredetailstothehairandfolds.Eraseanyunwantedlinesifworkingdirectlyonthedrawingpaper.Ifyouusedsketchpaperforyourstructuralsketch,traceortransfertheimageontodrawingpaperomittinganyunwantedlines.

Page 401: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:AddtheLighterValuesWitha2Bpencil,addthelightervalues.Forthisdrawing,theonlyareastobekeptwhitearethesidesofthepagesofthebook.

Page 402: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

tobekeptwhitearethesidesofthepagesofthebook.

STEP9:AddtheMiddleValuesGraduallydarkenthecontoursofthefigurebyaddingthemiddlevalues.

Page 403: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP10:AddtheDarkValuesWitha6Bpencil,begintoaddthedarkregionssuchastherecessesofthefoldsandothershadowedareas.

Page 404: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

thefoldsandothershadowedareas.

ReadingTimeGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

Page 405: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP11:AddtheDetailsandMakeAdjustmentsAddfinaldarks,detailsandadjustmentswith2Band6Bpencils.Useakneadederasertolightenanyareasthatneedadjusting,includinghighlightstothehairandclothes.Signthefrontofthedrawingandwritethedateontheback.

Page 406: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

YoungManRecliningSoftlightingisfallingonthissubjectfromtheupperright.Thepatternsoftheshirtfollowthecontoursofthefolds.

MaterialsPaper:9"×12"(23cm×30cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2BgraphiteOtherSupplies:kneadederaserOptionalSupplies:9"×12"(23cm×30cm)medium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper

RelatedInterests

ProportioningFolds

Page 407: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:PlacetheBasicProportionsUsinga2Bpencil,sketchhorizontallinesforthelowerhipandtopofthehead.Sketchverticallinesfortheplacementofthebackandtipofthefoot.Noticethatthisproportionisaboutoneandahalfthedistancefromthelowerhiptothetopofthehead.Addahorizontallinejustbelowthehiplineastherestingplacefortheheeloftheboot,andaddanotherlinefortheplacementofthelowerjaw.

Page 408: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchtheHead,Back,Hip,Knee,HeelandaLinefortheHandSketchtheshapeoftheheadandacurvedlinefortheback.Addcirclesforthehip,closestkneeandheel.Sketchashorthorizontallinefortheplacementofthefingertips.

Page 409: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:SketchtheArm,LegandFootContinuingwitha2Bpencil,sketchtheshapeofthearmwiththeshirtsleeve.Addtheshapeofthelegincludingthepantsalongwiththebackshapeofthefootwiththeboot.

Page 410: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:SketchtheTorso,BackLeg,FeetandHandsSketchadiagonallineforthefrontofthetorso.Addmorediagonallinesfortheformofthebackofthelegandtohelpalignthetopofthekneewiththechin.Sketchthevisibleshapeofthebackfootattachedtothebackleg.Roundofftheshapeoftheboot.Sketchtheformsofthehands.

Page 411: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:DeveloptheFaceandHandsDevelopthefacialfeaturesincludingtheearaswellasthehands.

Page 412: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:AddtheDetailsandRefinetheFormsStartaddingthedetailsthroughoutthefigureincludingthefoldsandrefinetheforms.

Page 413: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:EraseUnwantedLinesorTransfertheImageandAddthePatterntotheShirtEraseunwantedlinesifworkingdirectlyonthedrawingpaper.Ifyouareworkingonsketchpaper,traceortransfertheimageontodrawingpaperabsentanyunwantedlines.Startaddingtheparallellinesthatmakeupthepatternoftheshirt.

Page 414: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:ContinueAddingthePatterntotheShirtAddparallellinesthatcrossthepreviouslinesforthepatternoftheshirt.Continueusinga2Bpenciltoshadeinthepatternoftheshirt.

Page 415: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP9:AddtheLighterValuesThroughoutWitha2Bpencil,addthelightervaluestothehat,face,arm,hands,pantsandboots.

Page 416: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP10:AddtheMiddleValuesBeginaddingthemiddlevaluestoplacessuchasthefolds.

Page 417: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP11:AddtheMiddleandDarkValuesAddmoremiddlevaluesalongwithdarkvaluesthroughoutthefigureincludingtheshadowedareasusinga2Bpencil.

Page 418: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

AlexGraphitepencilondrawingpaper9"×12"(23cm×30cm)

STEP12:AddtheDetailsandMakeAdjustmentsAddthedarksanddetailsthroughout,includingthecastshadowsunderthefigure.Lightenasneededwithakneadederaser,includingthehighlightstotheclothes.Signthefrontandwritethedateonthebackofthedrawingwitha2Bpencil.

Page 419: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

BalletDancerThegracefulstatureandposeofaballetdancerisanaturalsubjectforfiguredrawing.Mostoftheweightofthefigurerestsonthedistantleg,withtheforwardlegcounterbalancingtheextendedarm.Themostdominantlightsourceilluminatingthesubjectisdirectedfromtheupperleft.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2BgraphiteOtherSupplies:kneadederaserOptionalSupplies:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper

RelatedInterests

Blocking-InProportioning

Page 420: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 421: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:SketchtheBalanceLineandtheHeadWitha2Bpencil,sketchaverticallinethatwillbethebalancelineofthefigurethatextendsfromthepitofthenecktothearchofthedistantfoot.Sketchtheshapeoftheheadleftofthebalanceline.Theheadtakesontheshapeofacirclebecauseitistiltedback.Sketchshorthorizontallinesfortheplacementofthepitoftheneckandalsoforthebottomofthedistantfootalongthebalanceline.

Page 422: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 423: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:AddLinesfortheShoulders,Hips,HandsandFootSketchanangledlineforthetiltedshouldersandanotherlineforthehips,whicharealsotiltedbutnotasmuchastheshoulders.Sketchlinestoplacethefarthestextensionofthearms.Anotherlineisaddedforthefarthestextensionoftheforwardleg.

Page 424: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 425: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:SketchtheTorsoandtheForwardLegContinuingwitha2Bpencil,sketchtheshapeofthetorso,andnoticetheanglesandformsofthelinesthatmakeuptheleftsideandforwardlegofthefigure.

Page 426: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 427: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:SketchtheArms,Leg,NeckandChestSketchthebasicformsofthearmsandthedistantleg.Addlinesfortheneckandchest.

Page 428: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 429: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:SketchtheHandsandFeetandPlacementLinesforOtherFeaturesSketchellipsesasthebasicformsofthehandsandfeet.Addcirclesandellipsesfortheplacementoftheelbows,kneesandankles.Addacurvedup-and-downlinetoindicatethecenterofthefronttorsoalongwithadiagonallineforthechest.Sketchlinestoindicatetheplacementofthefacialfeatures.

Page 430: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 431: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:DeveloptheFormandAddtheDetailsDeveloptheoverallformandbeginaddingdetailsincludingfacialfeaturesandclothes.

Page 432: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 433: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:EraseUnwantedLinesorTransfertheImageIfworkingdirectlyonthedrawingpaper,erasetheunwantedlines.Ifworkingonsketchpaper,usea2Bpenciltotraceortransfertheimageontodrawingpaper,leavingoutunwantedlines.

Page 434: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 435: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:AddtheLighterValuesWitha2Bpencil,addthelightervaluesovertheentirefigure.

Page 436: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 437: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP9:AddtheMiddleValuesContinuetousea2Bpenciltograduallyaddmorevaluesoverthepreviousvaluestodeveloptheformsandshadows.

Page 438: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 439: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP10:ContinueAddingtheValuesContinuebuildingupthevalueswithattentiontotheirsubtlechangesanddifferences,rememberingthelightsourceiscomingfromtheupperleft.

Page 440: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 441: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

BalletDancerGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

STEP11:AddtheDetailsandMakeAdjustmentsWitha2Bpencil,addthedarksanddetailsthroughoutincludingthehairandcastshadowsontheflooratthelowerright.Withakneadederaser,liftgraphitefromanyareastobelightened.Signthefrontandwritethedateonthebackofthedrawing.

Page 442: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

GuitarPlayerForthisdemo,toensuretheaccuracyoftheproportions,sketchtheentirefigureeventhoughwe’llcroptheimageforthefinaldrawing.Thefinishedsizeissmallerthantheotherdemosinthisbookbecausethebackgroundisdarkandrequiresmoreattentionwiththeapplicationofgraphite.Thelightsourceforthisiscomingfromthetopleft.Thebackgroundisdarkenedforthepurposeofgivingcontrasttothepersonandguitar.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2Bgraphite,4Bgraphite,6BgraphiteOtherSupplies:kneadederaser,slipsheetOptionalSupplies:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper,straightedge,valuescale

RelatedInterests

PositiveandNegativeFormsandLostEdges

Page 443: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 444: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:SketchtheBasicProportionsUsinga2Bpencil,sketchshorthorizontallinesforthetopoftheheadandthebottomofthefeet.Addaverticallinedownfromthepitoftheneckasthelineofbalance.Addanotherhorizontallineasthecenterline.Addalineatthechintoestablishthesizeofthehead.Becausethefigureisbentover,theheadsizeappearsbiggerthanusualandisaboutone-sixththeoverallheight.Sketchacurvedlinefortheshoulders,justabovethelineforthechin.

Page 445: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 446: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchtheHead,Torso,HipsandUpperLegsSketchanovalfortheshapeofthehead.Addlinescomingdownfromtheshoulderstoformthetorso,hipsandupperlegs.

Page 447: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 448: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddtheArms,LegsandNeckContinuingwitha2Bpencil,addlinesforthearmsandlegs.Addcirclesfortheplacementanddevelopmentoftheelbowsandknees.Drawadiagonallinefromtheheadtotheshoulderstoindicatetheneck.

Page 449: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 450: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:SketchtheGuitarSketchtheguitarwitharectangleforthebodyandparallellinesfortheneckoftheinstrument.Theguitarisangled,goingupwardattheneck.

Page 451: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 452: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:AddtheHands,Feet,GuitarFormandFacialLinesAddbasicshapesfortheplacementofthehandsandfeet.Formtheshapeoftheguitarandaddlinestothefacefortheplacementofthefeatures.

Page 453: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 454: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:AddtheDetailsAdddetailsincludingfacialfeatures,fingersandfeaturestotheclothingandguitar.Thestraightedgecanbeusedtosketchthestraightlinesoftheguitarneck.Addlinesfortheplacementoftheshadows.Becausethedrawingwillbecropped,detailsbelowthekneearenotnecessary.

STEP7:AddMoreDetailsandEraseUnwantedLinesorTransfertheImageEraseunwantedlinesifworkingdirectlyondrawingpaper.Ifworkingonsketchpaper,usea2Bpenciltotraceortransfertheimageontodrawingpaperomittingunwantedlines.Adddetailstotheguitarandtotheshadowedareasofthefaceandclothes.

Page 455: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:AddtheLighterValuesContinuingwitha2Bpencil,addthelightervaluestothefigureandtheguitar.Whenaddingthesevalues,avoidgoingsodarkthatthedetaillinesofthestructuralsketchbecomelostintheshading.

Page 456: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP9:AddMoreValuesAddmorevalues,graduallydarkeningtheimageintheshadowedareas.

Page 457: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP10:DarkentheBackgroundWitha6Bpencil,begindarkeningthebackground.Whileworking,remembertorestyourhandonaslipsheettoprotectyourdrawingfromunwantedsmearingofthegraphite.

Page 458: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP11:ContinueDarkeningtheBackgroundContinueusinga6Bpenciltodarkenthebackgroundthatsurroundsthefigureandtheguitar.

Page 459: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP12:DeveloptheValuesBuildupthevaluesofthefigureandtheguitarusingboth4Band6Bpencils.Youmaywanttouseavaluescaleinthissteptogaugethelightsanddarks.

Page 460: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

GuitarPlayerGraphitepencilondrawingpaper6"×9"(15cm×23cm)

STEP13:AddtheDarksandDetails,MakeAdjustmentsWith2B,4Band6Bpencils,addthedarksanddetailsthroughout.Youmayneedtolightensomeareaswithakneadederaser.Signthefrontandwritethedateonthebackofyourfinisheddrawing.

Page 461: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

WomanSittingThebodyisangledandsomeofthefeaturesareforeshortened,whichmakesthisfigurestudymorechallengingtodrawthanastraight-onorsideview.Thelightsourceiscomingfromtheupperleft,whichcausesmostfeaturestobelighterattheupperleft,graduallygettingdarkergoingtothelowerright.Blockinthefigure,thenaddthechair.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2Bgraphite,4BgraphiteOtherSupplies:kneadederaserOptionalSupplies:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper

RelatedInterests

Blocking-InProportioningHeads

Page 462: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 463: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:PlacetheBasicProportionsWitha2Bpencil,sketchhorizontallinesforthetopoftheheadandthelowestplacementofthetoes.Sketchaverticalline,fromtoptobottom,atthesideoftheface.Sketchahorizontallineatthebaseofthechin.Thisdistancefromthechintothetopoftheheadcanbeusedasaunittomeasureandcomparedistance,thoughitisnotatrueheadheightbecauseitincludesthehair.Addtwomoreverticallines,onefortheplacementofthekneeontheleftandtheotherforthearmontheright.

Page 464: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 465: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchtheHead,Shoulders,ArmsandLegContinuingwitha2Bpencil,sketchtheformoftheheadbyaddingcurvedlinesfortheforeheadandtheoutershapeofthehair.Sketchmorecurvedlinesfortheshouldersandtheouterformofthearms.Addastraightlinefortheundersideofthefrontleg.

Page 466: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 467: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddtheHair,Arms,LegsandNeckAddmoretotheformofthehair,andsketchthearms,legsandashortcurvedlinefortheneck.Addcirclesfortheclosestelbowandtheknees.

Page 468: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 469: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:AddtheFacialLines,Hands,FeetandClothesAddlinesfortheplacementoftheeyes,noseandmouth.Sketchbasicshapesforthehandsandfeet.Addlinesforthecuffsandedgesoftheclothing.

Page 470: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 471: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:SketchtheChairContinuingwitha2Bpencil,startsketchingtheformofthechairasabasicshapewithattentiontoitsplacementinrelationtotheformofthefigure.

Page 472: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 473: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:RefinetheFormandAddtheDetailsRefinetheformandstartaddingdetailstotheface,fingers,shoes,clothesandchair.

Page 474: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 475: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:EraseUnwantedLinesorTransfertheImageandAddMoreDetailsEraseunwantedlinesifworkingdirectlyondrawingpaperortransferthesketchontodrawingpaperusinga2Bpencil,leavingoutunwantedlines.Addmoredetailsincludinglinesforshadowsandherhair.

Page 476: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 477: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:AddtheLighterValuesUsinga2Bpencil,beginaddingvaluesstartingwiththelighterregionsincludingtheface,neck,hands,pantsandchair.

Page 478: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 479: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP9:AddtheMiddleValuesContinuingwitha2Bpencil,addthemiddlevalues,graduallydarkeningareasanddevelopingtheformthroughoutthesubject.

Page 480: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 481: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP10:AddtheHighlightsRemovegraphitetocreatehighlightsinthehairandonthepantsbypressingthetipofthekneadederaserdownanddraggingitalongthepapersurface.Ifthegraphiteistoodark,itisdifficulttoliftoffwiththekneadederaser.Thisiswhywehaven’taddedthedarkstothehairyet.

Page 482: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 483: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP11:AddtheDarksWitha4Bpencil,startaddingdarks.Placethedarksofthehairaroundthepreviouslyhighlightedareas.

Page 484: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 485: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MaryGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

STEP12:AddMoreValuesandDetailsWith2Band4Bpencils,continueaddingthevalues,includingdarks,detailsandtheshadowunderthechair.Lightenbyliftinggraphitewithakneadederaserifnecessary.Signthefrontandwritethedateonthebackofthefinisheddrawing.

Page 486: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 487: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MaryWatercoloroncold-pressedwatercolorpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

BEYONDDRAWINGTheunderstandingyougainthroughdrawingthehumanfiguredoesn’thavetobelimitedtodrawing,butitcanbecarriedovertootherartmediums.Itookthisdrawingastepfurtherandturneditintoapainting.

Page 488: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

YoungManSittingThisdemoisacontourdrawing.Afteryouworkupthestructuralsketch,youwilluseitasthefoundationforthelinework,appliedasacontinuouslineoringroupsofcontinuouslines,tocreatethecontourdrawing.Usealightboxtoilluminatethestructuralsketchthroughthedrawingpaperduringtheentirecontourdrawingprocess.Analternativeapproachistolightlyworkupthestructuralsketchonthedrawingpaperandthenapplythecontourdrawingwithaninkpendirectlyoverthestructuralsketch.Whenyou’vecompletedthelinework,erasethestructuralsketchtofinishthedrawing.Thelightsourceisprimarilycomingfromtheupperrightwithasecondary

lightsourcefromtheupperleft.Afterworkingupthestructuralsketch,youmaywanttopracticethecontour

drawingonascrapofpapertogetafeelforthetechniquebeforestartingtheactualfinisheddrawing.Thisdemocanalsobecompletedwithvaluesratherthancontourline,as

showninthebookintroduction.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaper,12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturesketchpaperPencils:2BgraphiteOtherSupplies:kneadederaser,lightbox,maskingtapeOptionalSupplies:inkpen(ifnotusingalightbox)

RelatedInterests

ContourSketching

Page 489: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Blocking-InProportioning

Page 490: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 491: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:PlacetheBasicProportionsWitha2Bpencil,sketchtwohorizontallinesonsketchpaper,oneforthetopofthehead,theotherforthebaseoftheforwardshoe.Sketchahorizontallineforthebaseofthechin.Thedistancefromthetopoftheheadtothechin,whichcanbeusedasaunitofmeasurement,iscountedaboutfiveandthree-quartersofthedistancefromthetopoftheheadtothebaseoftheshoe.Sketchverticallines,onefortheplacementofthelowerback,theotherfortheplacementofthedistantknee.

Page 492: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 493: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchtheHead,Waist,TorsoandLegsContinuingwitha2Bpencil,sketchtheshapeofthehead.Sketchalineforthewaistandlinesfortheshoulder,backandforearmtoformthetorso.Addlinestoformtheshapeoftheupperlegs.

Page 494: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 495: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:SketchtheArmsandLegsSketchlinesforthearmsandlegs.Addcirclesatthejointsfortheelbowandknees.

Page 496: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 497: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:AddtheHands,ShoesandStoolAddbasicshapesfortheformsofthehandsandshoes.Sketchthestructureofthestool.Beconsciousofwherethebaseofthestoollegslineupinrelationtotheshoes.

Page 498: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 499: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:DeveloptheFormDeveloptheoverallformincludingsketchingfaciallinesfortheplacementofthefeatures.Beginaddingdetailstotheclothesandshoes.

Page 500: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 501: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:ContinueAddingtheDetailsAdddetailsthroughoutincludingfacialfeaturesandlineworkindicatingshadowsandfoldsintheclothingwitha2Bpencil.

STEP7:StarttheContourDrawingTapethedrawingpaperoverthestructuralsketchandplacethisoverthelightboxtoilluminatethestructuralsketchthroughthedrawingpaper.Beginfollowingthestructuralsketchwitha2Bpencil,keepingthepencil

Page 502: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Beginfollowingthestructuralsketchwitha2Bpencil,keepingthepenciltothepapertofollowtheformsandcontoursasafluidline.Analternativeapproachistoplacethecontourdrawinglineworkdirectlyonthestructuralsketchwithaninkpen,withouttheuseofthelightbox.

Page 503: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 504: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:ContinuetheContourDrawingContinuetofollowthestructuralsketchforthelineworkofthecontourdrawingwitha2Bpencil.Darkerregionsmayhavemoreconcentratedlineworkthanthelighterregions.

Page 505: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 506: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

M.C.Graphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

STEP9:CompletetheContourDrawingContinueusinga2Bpenciltocompletethecontourdrawing.Keepthestoolsimple,drawingitmostlyinoutlineform.Erasepencillinesifyouoptedtodrawwithinkdirectlyoverthestructuralsketch.Signthefrontandwritethedateonthebackofthedrawing.

Page 507: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

YoungManRunningThisdemonstrationcapturestheenergyofarunnerinmotion.Noticethatthisfigureiscapturedinmidstride.Theweightofthebodythathasjustbeencarriedbytheleftfootisnowbeingtransferredtotherightfoot,withbothfeetabovethepavement.Remembertoalignthefeaturesthroughoutthedrawingprocesstoensuretheaccuracyoftheform.Thelightsourceisfromtheupperright,causingsomeofthelowerleftareasofthefeaturestobeinshadow.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2BpencilOtherSupplies:kneadederaserOptionalSupplies:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturesketchpaper,lightbox,maskingtape

RelatedInterests

ProportioningAligningAdultMaleRunning

Page 508: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 509: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:SketchtheBasicProportionsWitha2Bpencil,sketchahorizontallineatthebaseoftherightheelandanotherhorizontallineforthetopofthehead.Sketchanotherhorizontallineforthebaseofthechin,whichisslightlylessthanone-sixththedistancebetweenthetwopreviouslines.Sketchasinglecurvedlinethatwillrepresenttherightsideofthefaceandthetorso.Addacircleforthehipregionthatisconnectedtothepreviousline.

Page 510: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 511: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchtheHead,TorsoandUpperLegsContinuingwitha2Bpencil,sketchtheremainingformoftheheadalongwithlinesforthebackofthetorso,shouldersandupperlegs.Thelinesfortheleftlegaresketchedasacontinuationofthelinesofthetorso.

STEP3:SketchtheLowerLegsandHandsSketchcirclesforthekneesandaddlinesforthelowerlegs,endingwith

Page 512: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Sketchcirclesforthekneesandaddlinesforthelowerlegs,endingwithstraightlinesasthesolesoftheshoes.Addashorthorizontallineabovethelowestlinetoallowfortheproperplacementoftheleftshoe.Addcirclesfortheplacementofthehands.

STEP4:AddtheArms,FeetandBalanceLineSketchlinesforthearms.Addcirclesfortheplacementoftheelbows.

Page 513: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Sketchlinesforthearms.Addcirclesfortheplacementoftheelbows.Blockintheformsofthefeet.Addalineofbalancedownfromthepitofthenecktothepavement.Noticeitsplacementinrelationtothetorsoandthearmsandlegs.Addahorizontallinebelowtherightheellinefortheplacementofthecastshadowonthepavement.

Page 514: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:DeveloptheFormandAddFacialLinesandFingersDeveloptheouterformandclothesofthesubject.Addlinesfortheplacementoffacialfeaturesandlinesforthefingerswitha2Bpencil.

STEP6:EraseUnwantedLinesorTransfertheImageandAddMore

Page 515: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

DetailsEraseunwantedlinesifworkingdirectlyonthedrawingpaper,ortransferthesketchyouwantontodrawingpaperusinga2Bpencil.Adddetailssuchasshadowlinesandfacialfeatures.

Page 516: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:AddtheLighterValuesUsinga2Bpencil,addthelightervaluesovertheentirefigure.

STEP8:AddtheMiddleandDarkValuesBuildupthepencillinestoaddthedarkandmiddlevalues.

Page 517: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

JoshGraphitepencilondrawingpaper

Page 518: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

STEP9:AddtheDetailsandMakeAdjustmentsWitha2Bpencil,continueaddingvaluesandaddthedetailsincludingtheshadowunderthefigure.Lightenbyliftinggraphitewithakneadederaserifnecessary.Signthefrontandwritethedateonthebackofyourfinisheddrawing.

Page 519: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ViolinistWe’lluseamechanicalpencilthroughoutthesketchinganddrawingprocessofthisdemo.Thefinelinesofferedbythemechanicalpencilcanbedrawnclosetooneanothertoproduceevenregionsofvalues.Youcanusea2Bpencilinsteadifyouwanttoworkwithwiderpencilstrokes.Youcandrawthisfigurewithouthavingtoplanoutthebodyunderneath.The

pitoftheneckisdirectlyoverthefigure’srightfootasitcarriesmostoftheweight.Thefigure’srightarmisslightlyforeshortened,whereashisleftarmismoreforeshortened.Theshadowsaresubtlewiththelightsourcecomingfromtheupperright.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:.05mmgraphiteleadmechanicalpencilOtherSupplies:kneadederaserOptionalSupplies:2Bgraphitepencil,12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper,straightedge

RelatedInterests

ForeshorteningHatsandHeadgear

Page 520: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 521: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:SketchtheBasicProportionsUsingamechanicalpencil,sketchhorizontallinesforthetopofthehatandthebottomoftheshoes.Sketchaverticallinestartingattheleftlowerpantleguptotheareanearthehead.Sketchanotherverticallinestartingattherightlowerpantleganduptotheareaneartheviolin.

Page 522: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 523: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchLinesfortheHead,Shoulder,ArmandShirtSketchshortangledlinesfortheplacementofthetopofthehatandthelowerchin.Sketchanotherangledlinefortheshoulder.Sketchalinebelowhalfwaydownfortheshirttailandanotherlineontheleftfortheupperarm.

Page 524: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 525: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:AddLinesforthePants,Shirt,HeadandArmsAddlinestoformthehipregionofthepantsandshirtaswellaslinesfortheindividualpantlegs.Sketchastraightlinefortherightedgeoftheshirt.Completetheouterformoftheheadwithlinesforthesides,andsketchlinesforthebasicformsofthearms.

Page 526: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 527: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:AddBasicShapesfortheHands,ShoesandViolinSketchbasicshapesfortheformandplacementofthehandsandshoes.Sketchthebasicshapeoftheviolinwithstraightlinesthatmakerectangularforms.

Page 528: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 529: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:AddLinesfortheFeaturesAddlinesforthefacialfeaturesandthehatbrimandband.Addlinesforthefingersandfortheformofthehandsandarms.Sketchthecurvedformsoftheviolin,andaddlinesfortheshirtandlowerpantcuffs.

Page 530: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 531: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:DeveloptheFormDeveloptheoverallform,includingthefacewithsunglassesandtheviolinbow.Youcanuseastraightedgetosketchthestraightlinesoftheviolinneckandbow.

Page 532: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 533: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:AddtheDetailsandEraseUnwantedLinesorTransfertheImageWithamechanicalpencil,adddetailsincludingthestripesandfoldsoftheclothing.Eraseunwantedlinesifworkingdirectlyonthedrawingpaper.Ifyouworkedupyourstructuralsketchonsketchpaper,traceortransfertheimageontodrawingpaper,leavingoutunwantedlines.

Page 534: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 535: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:StartAddingtheValuesWithamechanicalpencil,startaddingthevalues,beginningwiththelightervalues.ForthisdrawingIstartedatthetopandworkeddown.Atthisstage,avoiddarklineworkthatmaycoveroverandlosethepreviousstructurallines.

Page 536: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 537: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP9:ContinueAddingtheLighterValuesandAddtheCastShadowContinuetocovertheformwithlightpencilstrokes.Becausetheviolinandshoesaretobedark,itisnotnecessarytocoverthemwithlightpencilstrokes.Addthecastshadowonthepavementbelowthefigure.

Page 538: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 539: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP10:AddtheDarkerValuesBuildupthepencilstrokestocreatethedarkervalues.Developthedrawingbyfocusingononesectionatatimeorgraduallydarkeningbyworkingontheoverallfigure.

Page 540: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 541: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP11:ContinuetoAddtheDarkerValuesContinuetoaddandbuildupthepencilstrokestocreatethedarkervalues.Darkentheviolinandshoes.

Close-UpClose-upsketchesofthehandsandarmsaregoodforincreasingyourobservationalskillsasyouproceedtothefinisheddrawing.

Page 542: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 543: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ViolinPlayerGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

STEP12:AddtheFinishingDetailsandMakeAdjustmentsAddthefinishingdetailssuchasdarkeningthehatband,shirtstripesandtheviolinbow,andaddtotheshadowonthepavement.Makeanyadjustmentssuchaslighteningareasasnecessarywithakneadederaser.Signthefrontandwritethedateonthebackofthefinisheddrawing.

Page 544: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

VictorianDressWiththisfigure’slayeredclothing,itcanbechallengingtoplacethefeaturesandproportionscorrectly.Beforesketchingthesleeves,lightlysketchthearmsandthenaddthesleevesoverthearms.Thebodyisforwardontheleft,sothefigureisslightlyofffrombeingsymmetrical.Thelightsourceiscomingfromtheupperleft,causingtherightsideofthe

dresstobedarkerthantheleftside.Becauseofthefullnessofthebellofthedress,ithastheappearanceofdraperymaterial.

MaterialsPaper:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturedrawingpaperPencils:2Bgraphite,6BgraphiteOtherSupplies:kneadederaserOptionalSupplies:12"×9"(30cm×23cm)medium-texturesketchpaper,lightboxortransferpaper

RelatedInterests

ProportionsHeadsHandsClothesandFolds

Page 545: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 546: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP1:PlacetheBasicProportionsUsinga2Bpencil,sketchtwohorizontallines,oneforwherethefeetwouldrestunderneaththedressandanotherhorizontallineforthetopoftheheadunderneaththehat.Sketchaverticallinetokeeptheformbalanced.Addahorizontallineatthecenter,halfwayfromtoptobottom.Sketchanotherhorizontallinefortheplacementofthechintoestablishtheheadheight.Remember,theheightoftheentirefigureisseven-and-a-halfheads.SeeChapter2formoreinfoonheadheightandproportions.

Page 547: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 548: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP2:SketchtheHead,TorsoandHemoftheDressContinuingwitha2Bpencil,sketchanovalfortheshapeofthehead.Toformthetorso,sketchlinesfortheshouldersandsidesalongwithalineforthewaist.Addacurvedlineslightlybelowthefeetforthebottomhemofthedress.

Page 549: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 550: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP3:SketchtheUpperSleeves,Collar,HandsandtheWidthoftheDressTostartformingthedress,sketchtheupperportionsofthesleevesandcollar.Toensureaccuracy,roughlysketchthebodyformsuchasthearmsundertheclothes.Placethehandswithovals.Addshortverticallinestothebottomhemofthedresstoestablishitswidth.

Page 551: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 552: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP4:SketchtheLowerSleeves,DressandHatBrimContinuingwitha2Bpencil,sketchtheformofthelowersleeves,thesidesofthelowerportionofthedressandthecurveofthehatbrim.

Page 553: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 554: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP5:AddtheStructuralDetailsAddthestructuraldetailstothehatandsleeves.Addtheshirtcollarandlapelstothejacketandtheouterformofthehair.Addlinesfortheplacementoffacialfeaturesandlinesforthefingers.

Page 555: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 556: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP6:AddMoreDetailsandDeveloptheFormAddmoredetailstothedress,hatandfaceanddeveloptheoverallform,includingthehands.

Page 557: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 558: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP7:AddMoreDetails,EraseUnwantedLinesorTraceorTransfertheImageWitha2Bpencil,continueaddingdetailsandrefiningtheform.Eraseunwantedlinesifworkingdirectlyonthedrawingpaper.Traceortransfertheimageontodrawingpaperifyouareworkingonsketchpaper.

Page 559: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 560: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP8:AddtheLightValuesWitha2Bpencil,addthelightvaluestothedrawing.

Page 561: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 562: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP9:AddtheMiddleValuesBuildupthepencillinestoaddthemiddlevalueswitha2Bpencil.Therightsideofthefigureisdarkerthantheleftsidebecausethelightiscomingfromtheupperleft.

Page 563: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 564: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

STEP10:AddtheDarksUsing2Band6Bpencils,adddarksthroughoutthedrawingandgivedepthtotheforminareassuchasthefolds.

Page 565: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 566: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

WomaninaVictorianDressGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

STEP11:AddtheDetailsandMakeAdjustmentsAdddetailstotheface,hands,glovesandclothesbydarkeningtheshadowedareaswith2Band6Bpencils.Lightenhighlightareasbyremovinggraphitewiththekneadederaser.Signthefrontandwritethedateonthebackofyourcompleteddrawing.

Page 567: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

YourFinishedDrawingOnceyou’vecompletedadrawing,followthesestepstoprotectitformanyyearstocome.

MATTINGANDFRAMINGAmatandframewillfinishandprotectyourdrawingandenhanceitsappearance.Anacid-freematispreferabletoprotectthedrawingfromyellowingwherethematboardanddrawingcomeincontact.Asheetofglassatthefrontalongwithbackingboardandcraftpaperonthebackwillsandwichthedrawingandmatboardinsidetheframe,keepingyourdrawingprotectedfromtheelements.

SPRAYFIXATIVEYoucansprayfixativeoverthesurfaceofadrawingtohelpthemediumadheretothepaper’ssurfaceandpreventitfromsmearing.Onceitiscoatedinfixative,thedrawingcannotbeerased.Thoughfixativecanbeusedongraphitedrawings,itisn’tnecessary.Fixative

ismostusefulwithsoftmediumssuchascharcoalandpastels,whicharemorepronetosmearingandhavingadustpowderthatcanfalloff.Ifyouchoosetosprayfixativeoverthesurfaceofyourdrawing,besureto

followtheinstructionsonthecan.Applyfixativeonlyinawell-ventilatedspace.

Page 568: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing
Page 569: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

GreatPresentationandProtectionPresentingyourartwithaproperframecanmakeagooddrawinglookgreataswellasprotectitforfutureenjoyment.

Page 570: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ConclusionNowthatyouhavereachedtheendofthisbook,don’tstophere.Continuetohoneyourartisticskillsbykeepingyourpencilandsketchpapercloseby.Bepatientwithyourprogress.Observeyourpreviousdrawingstolookfortheimprovementsyouhavemadesinceyoustartedthisbook.YourknowledgeandexpertisegainedthroughDrawingPeoplefortheAbsoluteBeginneraregreatresourcesforlearningnewsubjectsandmediumsasyoucontinueonyourartisticjourney.Havefunandkeepupthegoodwork!

Page 571: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

MarkandMaryWillenbrink

Page 572: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

GuitarPlayerSketchGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

Page 573: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Glossary

AAcid-freepaper:paperthathasnotbeenprocessedwithacid.Acidcancausepapertoyellowovertime.

BBaseline:alinethatestablishestheplacementofasubjecttoworkouttheproportionsofafigure.Black-and-whitesketch/drawing(orchiaroscuro):adrawingthatdefinesthesubjectusingonlyhighlycontrastingvalues.Blocking-in:theprocessofmakingastructuralsketchofthebasicshapesandproportionsofasubject.Bulldogclips:largeclipsusedtoattachpapertoadrawingboard.

CCarbonpencil:apencilwithacarboncore.Castshadow:shadowthatiscastfromanobjectontoanotherform.Centerofbalance:thecenterpointofbalanceforafigure.Centerline:alineusedtodeterminethecenterofafigureoraperson’shead.Charcoalpencil:apencilwithacharcoalcore.Chiaroscuro:seeBlack-and-whitesketch/drawing.Coloredpencil:apencilwithacoloredcore,alsoavailableinblack,whiteandgray.Composition:thearrangementofelementsinartwork.Contoursketch(orcontinuouslinesketch):asketchordrawingdonebykeepingthepencilincontactwiththepaperwhilestudyingthecontoursofa

Page 574: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

drawing.Contrast:differencesbetweenthelightsanddarksinacomposition.Copierpaper:inexpensivepaperusedincopymachinesorprinters.Craftknife:asmallknifewithasharp,replaceableblade.Crop:determiningthevisibleareaofapieceofartwork.

DDivider:atoolsimilarinappearancetoacirclecompassusedformeasuringandproportioning.Drawing:afinishedrepresentationofasubject.Drawingboard:asmooth,sturdyboardusedassupportwhensketchinganddrawing.Drawingpad:sheetsofdrawingpaperattachedatonesidewithglueoracoilofwire.Drawingpaper:heavyweightpaperusedfordrawing,usually90lb.(190gsm)ormore.

EEasel:astandtopropartwork.Ellipse:theshapeacircletakesonwhenviewedatanangle.

FFixative:asprayappliedtoartworktopreventsmearing.Formshadow:ashadowthatappearsonanobjectdisplayingitsform.

GGauge:comparingproportionsofafigureorelementsinadrawing.Graphite:asoftblacksubstanceusedinthecoreofsomepencils.Graphitepencil:apencilwithagraphitecore.

Page 575: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

HHeadheight:distancefromthetopoftheheadtothebaseofthechin.Theheadheightcanbeusedasaunitofmeasurement;theaverageadultisseven-and-a-halfheadshigh.Highlight:anareawherelightiscastonthesubject,causingabrightspot.Horizontalline:alinethatgoesacrossthepagefromsidetoside.

IIdentifiableform:aformofanimagethatiseasytoidentify.

KKneadederaser:apliable,puttylikeeraser.

LLead:thecoreofapencil.Alsomayrefertoascaleratingthehardnessorsoftnessofapencil.Lightbox:ashallowboxwithaninteriorlightthatshinesthroughatranslucentsurfaceusedfortracingartwork.Lightsource:theoriginofthelightforascene.Lineofbalance:averticallineusedtounderstandthebalanceofafigure.Lostedges:theareaswheretheformofanimageblendsinwiththebackground.

MMechanicalpencil:apencilthatusesrefillablegraphite.

PParallellines:linesthatfollowthesamedirectionandwillnevermeet.Pencilextender:adevicethatattachestotheendofashortenedpencil,extendingthepencil’slength.

Page 576: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

Pencilsharpener:adeviceusedtosharpentheendofapenciltoapoint.Plasticeraser:seealsoVinyleraser,asoft,nonabrasiveeraser.Proportionlines:linesusedtohelpobtaincorrectproportionswhendrawingafigure.

RReferencematerial:picturesandphotosfromvarioussourcesthatareusedtoaidinthestudyofasubject.Reflectedlight:lightthatisreflectedfromonesurfaceontoanother.

SSandpaperpad:asmallpadofsandpapersheetsattachedtoahandle,whichisusedforsharpeningpenciltips.Sewinggauge:atoolwithamovablemarkingguidethatcanbeusedformeasuringandproportioning.Sketch:arough,unfinishedrepresentationofasubject.Sketchpaper:lightweightpaperusedforsketching,commonly50to70lb.(105gsmto150gsm).Slipsheet:asheetofpaperplacedoveraportionoftheartworksothehandholdingthepencilcanmoveacrosstheunfinisheddrawingwithoutsmearingtheartwork.Straightedge:atoolusedfordrawingstraightlines,e.g.,aruler.Structuralsketch:asketchofasubjectshowingthebasicformofthefigure.Surfacetexture:thecoarsenessofthesurfaceofpaper.

TTooth:theroughnessofapaper’ssurface.Trace:drawingapreviouslysketchedimageontodrawingpaperbyilluminatingtheimagefrombehind.Tracingpaper:thin,translucentpaper.

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Transfer:relocateanimagefromsketchpaperontodrawingpaper.

VValuescale:acardboardorpaperstripthatshowsarangeofvaluesfromwhitetoblack.Valuesketch:asketchthatdisplaysthelightsanddarksofasubject.Values:degreesoflightsanddarksinasketchordrawing.Verticalline:alinethatgoesupanddownonthepage.Vinyleraser:seealsoPlasticeraser,asoft,nonabrasiveeraser.Vinylerasersleavestringsbehind,whileotherplasticerasersleavecrumbs.

WWoodlesspencil:apencilmadeofacylinderoflacquer-coatedgraphite.Itdoesnothaveanouterwoodcasing.

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Page 579: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ThreeChildrenGraphitepencilondrawingpaper12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

Page 580: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

AbouttheAuthorsMarkandMaryarethebest-sellingauthorsoftheAbsoluteBeginnerseries.Theyenjoysharingthefundamentalsofartinunderstandableterms,encouragingotherstopursuetheircreativepotential.Markisalsoafineartistandteachesartclassesandworkshops.MarkandMarylivewiththeirfamily,bordercollieandtwocatsinsouthwesternOhio.Formoreinformationontheirlatestbooksandworkshops,visitwww.shadowblaze.comandcheckoutMark’sFacebookfanpage.

Page 581: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

ACKNOWLEDGMENTSToMaryBostic,thankyouforyourtime,energy,expertiseandwisdomthatyoupourintoourbooks.Yourencouragementandsupporthelpedtomakethisbookgreat.ThankyoutoalloftheF+WMedia,Inc.teamwhoworkedbehindthescenes

tomakethisanotheroutstandingAbsoluteBeginnerbook:designersWendyDunningandHannahBailey,productioncoordinatorMarkGriffin,associateeditorBethErikson,copyeditorJohnKuehn,proofreaderCynthiaLaufenberg,indexerDianaMartin,andmarketingmanagerMeaghanFinnerty.

Page 582: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

DEDICATIONLaosDeoPraisetoGodWededicatethisbooktoeveryonewhomodeledforus.Weappreciateyourtimeandyourenthusiasticsupport.Becauseofyou,wearemoreabletoteachandencourageothersintheirartisticendeavors.

FREEBonusDemonstrationVisitartistsnetwork.com/Willenbrink-Drawing-PeopleforaFREEbonusdemonstration.

Page 583: Drawing People for the Absolute Beginner A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Figure Drawing

DrawingPeoplefortheAbsoluteBeginner.Copyright©2014byMarkandMaryWillenbrink.Allrightsreserved.NopartofthiseBookmaybereproducedinanyformorbyanyelectronicormechanicalmeansincludinginformationstorageandretrievalsystemswithoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher,exceptbyareviewerwhomayquotebriefpassagesinareview.PublishedbyNorthLightBooks,animprintofF+W,aContent+eCommerceCompany,10151CarverRoad,Suite200,BlueAsh,OH45242.(800)289-0963.FirstEdition.

OtherfineNorthLightproductsareavailablefromyourlocalbookstore,artsupplystoreoronlinesupplier.Visitourwebsiteatfwmedia.com.

eISBN:9781440330216

Thise-bookedition:June2014(v.1.0)