LEARNING BODY PROPORTIONS

        The head was always something I could comfortably sketch to some extent (until I had to draw the facial features), however the body was always a task that was easy enough until I got below the shoulders. That's when my drawings became complete failures - arms were longer than the legs, the legs were too short and the waist was always too square. Therefore in Lecture 2, where I learnt how to draw the body to proportion, I came heaps and bounds from where I was. 

   We started by drawing a entire character to measure our ability to draw the body, from there we were then taught to techniques of proportion. The first attempt is below;

   From this initial drawing, we was then told the individual proportions of the body before finally using that knowledge to practice sketching the body as a basic skeletal frame (image below). Within an hour I learnt;

• The body is generally 8 heads in height
• The body is generally 3 heads in width
• The joint of the arm lands directly in the middle
• From head to hips is the same length as from hips to feet
• Hands should land half way down the thighs
• The Knee is half way up the leg

   Already you can see how I'd progressed from the first body sketch. From these quick sketches I had mastered the measurements of the general human body. I now needed to draw the body from the side. However one further problem I'd always had was to differentiate a male from a female when drawing without reference images. I was taught both and practiced both in the next session.

   Two main tips were taught to me when drawing women - one, draw men with straighter lines and woman with curved lines and two, draw swimsuits on woman to get the figure correct (a personal aid the tutor used to use). From this I believe I managed to achieve the female figure, however I wouldn't call it a complete success, further practice is definitely needed. All that was needed now was to learn the hardest part of drawing the anatomy - the hands and feet.

   Overall, that one lesson in drawing has been the most useful drawing lesson I've ever had. From what I learned here coupled with what I learned the week on head proportions and facial features, I can now confidently draw any character I wish to with realism. However, I still need practice on both, as my drawings currently look like drawings completed by someone who's just taken a class in drawing basics (which I had) where as I want to be produce natural and accomplished work - the kind of work people look at an wonder how it was achieved.

NEXT POST: LEARNING HANDS