FIGURE DRAWING
DRAWN ANATOMY
We are the result of a biological
anatomy: both our bodies and our
models’ bodies are made up of hard
edges of bone, rhythmic muscular
forms and cushions of fat held in an
elastic integument. Our drawings,
therefore, should also have an
anatomy to them: they can be built
from a collection of fundamental
shapes with the fi nal lines and tones
layered over the top like skin.
Drawn anatomy makes reference
to biological anatomy, but they are
not the same thing. We do not draw
a fully detailed skeleton, layered with
individual muscles before we arrive
at the contour of the fi gure, but
instead use simplifi ed shapes to
support looking – they provide just
enough structure for us to move on
to the next layer of observation.
A drawing that is overly concerned
with anatomical precision can
become as rigid and uncanny as a
carved écorché, losing the humanity
of the model who served as subject.
A drawing that only focuses on the
surface of the fi gure with no sense of
internal structure can become like
a rubber mask, all soft surface with
no bones.
Most artists who take a
constructive approach to fi gure
drawing adapt conventional models to
fi t their own needs. The fi rst and most
useful structures are those of bone,
from the volume of the skull, ribcage
and pelvis, which all underpin the
core of the torso, to the spine, which
informs the gestural line of action in
the fi gure. The volumes of the body
are fl eshed out with shapes of muscle
and fat, with active muscle holding
the body up against gravity, and the
fat and relaxed muscle hanging with
the tug of that downward force. On
the left are some simple shapes to
look for in the fi gure that refer to the
anatomy beneath.Skeletal landmarks Simple forms Surface texture and contour