Archive for category Subject: Anatomy
Complete Guide to Life Drawing || Gottfried Bammes
Posted by henry in Author: Gottfried Bammes, Medium: Drawing, Publisher: Search Press, Subject: Anatomy, Subject: Figure on July 12, 2011
A lot of things claim to be the complete guide but, at a whopping 312 pages, this one certainly looks and feels the part.
Getting inside it confirms that this is indeed a substantial work, with every aspect of the human form examined from block shapes through muscle and bone structure to the completed artwork. Each section follows the same progression, so it becomes easy to follow which, given how much there is to absorb, is a definite plus. Because there’s so much, though, you need to be aware that this is something to sit down and take time with, rather than dip into. Think of it as a structured course and you won’t go far wrong with it.
Gottfried covers male and female figures, both static and in motion and in a variety of poses, as you’d probably expect from a book of this kind. He also deals in the same detail with eyes and ears as he does with bodies and legs, so there’s literally no stone unturned.
If you can’t get a private tutor, this is very much the next best thing. It’s structured very much like a course and is absolutely thorough in its attention to detail and should satisfy the most demanding student.
Complete Anatomy And Figure Drawing || John Raynes
Posted by henry in Author: John Raynes, Medium: Drawing, Medium: Watercolour, Publisher: Batsford, Subject: Anatomy, Subject: Figure on August 7, 2007
John Raynes has pretty much cornered the market in books on drawing and painting the human figure and it is a measure of his skill and depth of understanding that he has produced such a number without repeating himself and continuing to have something worthwhile to say.
This is an exhaustive study of human form and structure, as detailed as an architectural handbook or car maintenance manual. With the aid of colour coded drawings that are little works of art in themselves, John explains, in terms aimed at the artist and not the medical student, how the human body fits together and moves. Follow his tutorial through and you will understand the complex machine that the body is, how one part blends into another and how one movement provokes and influences another. Poetry in motion is what it becomes.
More than half the extent is taken up with this textbook stuff, but it’s not something you can hurry and John sensibly resists all temptation to do so. The reward for your effort in following it is what follows: a masterclass in drawing and painting a series of complete poses and compositions that simply come alive on the page. John, as we know, is supreme at this kind of thing but work with him and you too will stand a chance of getting at least somewhere near him.
Batsford 2007
£18.99
