Figure Drawing 101
Artists see the figure in several ways: Gesture, Stick Figure, Contour and Mass. We will practice them all in this session.
- About this session
- Entry Requirements: None
- What will we learn in this session?
- Book this session
About this session
Enter the wonderful world of figure drawing!
Artists see the figure in several ways: Gesture, Stick Figure, Contour and Mass. We will practice them all in this session.
| Pete's Figure Drawing Practice Routine. | |
|---|---|
| Gesture | Simple marks showing mass, movement and weight distribution. |
| Stick Figure | Head = oval
Joints = dots or circles Limbs = lines Feet = Triangles |
| Overall shape | Simplify the shape
Find the main angles Enclose the arms |
| Counterpoint | Opposite sides of the neck, torso and legs will be alternately compressed and stretched. |
| Internal Shapes | Circles, squares and triangles within the body. |
| Scribble | Wander in and out of the shapes in one loose line. |
| Ribcage & Pelvis | Position and size of shoulders and hips. |
| 3-D | Tilt, foreshortening, perspective. |
| Form from Tone | Find the light and shadow on each big shape. |
| Contour | Finding the lines which wrap around the shapes, creating volume and foreshortening. |
| Texture | Add texture to hair and clothing with simple strokes and cross-hatching. |
We learn to capture the expression of a movement in a few simple marks.
What will we learn
The human body is one of the most complex objects we can draw due to it's ingenious construction. We make the subject accessible by using powerful and simple techniques:
- Abstraction
- Applying Cezanne's 3 shapes (Sketch 101: Engrave your memories)
- Contour
- Counterpoint
- Gesture Drawing
- Mass
- Perspective
- Scribble
- Stick Figures
Contour lines indicate the shape of curved objects. Here we are describing the neck, arms and torso as cylinders.
With a few gesture marks and some contour lines we have really captured the essence of this complex pose.
Stick figures are developed into fully realised drawings, element by element. Here we are looking for contour and counterpoint.
Movement and balance captured with simple gesture marks.
