Trying to create an anatomically correct figure is not always easy. But don’t worry, in this detailed guide, we will berbagi some simpel methods to make drawing a body more achievable.
The body is integral to many aspects of artmaking; you need it for any character you might want to create or even in environmental artworks with people in the background.
So studying and practising how to draw a body is important. You want to feel comfortable creating stylized figures in whatever poses and designs you would like.
The body is difficult to capture through art as there are many components to consider. You must remember to engage the fundamentals of art, specifically considering form, structure, and composition – as well as considering proportions and figure anatomy, body movements, and stylization.
To make this scary process easier to approach, we have broken it down into some simpel steps. As well as this, you could try out our specialized course, ‘Figure Drawing For Beginners’.
Pencil Sketch Of A Body
Sketch Of A Body [@rheatibbey]
Before you can begin adding personality and stylization to the bodies your draw, it is integral to understand the proportions of human anatomy.
Getting the body proportionally correct can be difficult, but there are a few shape-work techniques you can use to sketch the human body.
These will help you learn how to sketch a very front-facing body, but luckily they can still be used as a basis for drawing other angles as well.
How To Draw A Body
How To Draw A Body [@art_bymemo]
The Eight-Head Rule
First, you have to consider the body as it is in real life; a connection and chain of joints. Drawing the body becomes easier when you break it down into these parts.
There is a general rule, devised during the Renaissance, that the ideal human body is eight heads long.
This rule helps you to map out the general shape of the human body. However, this rule can make adding more flow to your body difficult.
As you move on to creating more expressive characters, you can become more liberal with using eight equal parts, changing around sizing and angles of these guidelines to better suit your character’s body language.
But, to begin with, we will plot eight equal parts. You can also add a vertical line of flow through your eight segments, showing the posture and positioning of your body’s figure. This almost acts like your drawing’s spine.
The Eight-Head Rule For Drawing A Body
The Eight-Head Rule For Drawing A Body
The eight parts represent different elements of the human body;
The head
The shoulders and upper chest
The lower chest and stomach
The pubic bones
The thighs
The knees
The shins
And finally, the feet
Each body is extremely different, and therefore some of these steps may vary depending on what you are trying to achieve. Additionally, the male and female body proportions have a different overall shape, meaning that the linework for each will differ.
The Head
To begin with, draw the head in the first segment. This is typically an oval shape; however, you can adjust the proportions to match whatever figure and body model you want to achieve.
Starting with the head may feel unnatural, but it really helps you get the flow of the body, as you work your way down from head to toe.
Even when not following the Renaissance eight-head rule, I still like to start with plotting down the head as it is a good starting spot and removes any complications, allowing you to immediately understand the sizing and proportions of the body you will be creating.
You could also check out our detailed guide on the Loomis method for drawing the head.