Structure
Source: Notes from a book titled ‘The Fundamentals
of Drawing Anatomy’
The
skeleton
When we look at a nude body we see only a fraction
of the skeleton – where, for example, parts of it protrude from under muscle
and push against the skin. The rest of
it we know imprecisely as a framework and structure for our organs and
limbs. For an artist it is important to
gain an intrinsic appreciation and knowledge of this framework and how it
functions.
Muscles
There are three types of muscle: skeletal, smooth
and cardiac. It is the skeletal
muscles that are most important for artists. Skeletal muscles are attached
to the bones by rough fibres called tendons.
So when the muscle contracts the tendon pulls the bone, causing it to
move. Many muscles are grouped in
opposing pairs, so that when one muscle contracts the other expands or
releases. This action is most evident in
the movement of our arms and legs.
There are two types of skeletal muscle,
one lying just under the surface of the skin, called superficial muscles – and
the other layered beneath the superficial muscled – called the deep
muscle.
The superficial muscles, together with the bones, show
the underlying form of the body and their study is essential for the artist.
Skin
Portraits by Dürer, Rembrandt and Ingres, to name but three
masters, reveal a fascination for the skin.
How much of the structure of the superficial muscle appears through the
skin will vary from subject to subject, depending on how much fat they have on
their body. Similarly the texture and
look of the skin changes with age, state of health and the position of the
body.
Proportion
Artists like Leonardo and Dürer observed the human body
could be divided up or measured by using the head as a unit of
measurement. This book shows the height
of the head, measured from its top to the bottom of the chin, goes into the
height of the body eight times. This
system only works when the model is standing straight, however if they are in a
different position we can use this same
unit of measurement in a grid system across the drawings, using this
proportional unit we can work out the exact size of certain anatomical features
in relation to others. I will give a
very clear knowledge of anatomical proportions within the human body.
It remains to say
that proportions can vary between individuals and the artist has to take this
into account when studying the subject.
Posture
How we hold ourselves is controlled by muscles. Like the skin, posture can tell much about a subject. In other words ‘body language’ can communicate fundamental information about an individual at a particular moment.
Before setting up a pose the artist must have a clear
idea of what he wants to communicate or express. Rodin’s Thinker
and Michelangelo’s David are famous
examples of artists using posture and gesture to give conscious meaning to
their work. How we hold ourselves is controlled by muscles. Like the skin, posture can tell much about a subject. In other words ‘body language’ can communicate fundamental information about an individual at a particular moment.
Fundamental form
For a drawing of a figure to come to life it must have the illusion of volume both above and below the surface. Fundamental form may be described as the volume or composition that lies below the surface of the skin.
For a drawing of a figure to come to life it must have the illusion of volume both above and below the surface. Fundamental form may be described as the volume or composition that lies below the surface of the skin.
Various visual ‘languages’ have been devised by artists such
as Leonardo and Dürer to illustrate fundamental form, from cubes and oblongs to
ovoids and cylinders.
Below a figure is drawn according to the following sequence:
1.
Proportions indicated by markers and
relationship of posture within the pose
2.
The posture and pose overlaid by fundamental
form ie shapes
3.
The above with the addition of the underlying
skeletal structure
4.
The finished drawing
