Drawing the human figure

Due to the covid 19 pandemic, no group activities are taking place, if they are taking place they are restricted to the amount of numbers and you would be required to wear a medical mask. I have decided to take a video life drawing class with the Royal Academy. #LifeDrawingLive

Here is the link- https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/article/online-life-drawing-class-lifedrawinglive

SET UP – Tools

HB, 2B, 4B

Black smooth

clutch pencil with lead

paper stumps

paper tortillon

Three minute pose warmup – Four poses

I am actually impressed with my three minute poses.

First pose – I approached this task by assessing the outlines of the model. I was able to include some lines for hair the face shape and the shape of the pants.
Second pose – I’m still assessing the outline while creating this image. I reassessed the leg shape and area as my scale was off. The shapes are not accurate.
Third pose – This pose had a lot of defining lines around the stomach area so I used much looser lines and more of them to give a less restricted view of the image.
Fourth pose – I noticed the shadows and light in this pose before the shape of the human figure so with this sketch a try to include the lines of the shadows as well as the shape.

10 minute pose – Fifth pose – Having more time meant I was able to look for a little bit longer before starting this sketch. I focused on the areas that had shadow and spent some time introducing shading. I used a mixture of pencil grades and used paper tortillion for shading. I was also able to introduce some of the surrounding area which helped with the positioning of my model. Overall my scale is off.
15 minute pose – Sixth Pose – We was asked to approach this pose in a different way to how we created the other sketches. I looked at the blank shapes the body made. Creating this sketch, I started by drawing the space in between the models arm, body and leg. I then attempted to follow the lines and shadows from left to right. I’m not sure this work as well as the final image looks a little distorted. I was able to create emphasis of the light and shadows and this allowed me to really assess the way the body curves and sit while in this awkward angle.
25 minute pose – Seventh Pose – Even looking at this sketch you can tell I have more time. I tried to focus on achieving the correct scale using the entire a free page. I use shadow and really took some time to get the correct shape. I was able to include the object the model was sitting on and the creases and shadows. Overall this piece has good composition and scale and I can see where I have built up tonal value.

During this 90 minute life drawing class, I am impressed by by accuracy in the three minute poses, I have achieved accurate outlines when given more time I kind of panicked and I feel like it’s extremely noticeable in the 10 and 15 minutes sketches. My scale is often both and its surrounds the leg area. I have learnt that, if I focus on the overall image I am able to assess the scale against the page size but if I focus on certain areas first, I warped the image trying to create as I can’t work on parts of an image without getting the overall scale of an image first. In my 25 minute pose sketch, I have to fit the entire body across the page to a decent scale and you shading more accurately I use shadow on line to convey the human figure. From this I think that the 25 minute sketch is the one where I actually thought about the face of my subject using shadow on line add some definition and I think I will do six pose without a time restriction.

Sketch eight – No time limit                      (paused video at 46.08)

I started by focusing on the fabric in the central leg area, likely marking shadows and folds. I then began to sketch the left leg including shadow. I think using the shapes of the shadows, creases and spaces will help me keep my drawing accurate. I then began creating the torso area, again focusing on the shapes of the shadows and natural body creases. The left arm was a bit fiddly for me to get the right-angled lines but adding shadow again made me look at the smaller shape allow me to create more realistic and lifelike shape. I drew the right arm and leg simultaneously aiming to accurately create the space they took hold of. Shadows were created with a lighter 2B pencil once I felt happy with the overall shape of the figure. I used a 4B pencil to darken and smooth shading with paper stumps and tortillon.

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