Life Drawing
Lesson I
Gesture -- The Foundation of Figurative Art
Refinements: Contour Center Lines
The human body has a left side and a right side
-- anatomical mirror images of each other. At the intersection between the
two halves, we can see a dividing line. On the front, the dividing line
is a variably shallow trough, running down the chest and abdomen. For the
neck and head, there is little troughing, but mirror symmetry points to
the location of the center line. On the back, we see evidence of the spine.
Because the exterior center lines of front and back travel
along an undulating (contoured) path -- over bumpy bone and muscle -- I
call these exterior-contour -center-lines. Besides the center-line
axes for the rib cage and pelvis ovals, there is yet one more kind of center
line coming up in the next section on projection and volume augmentations.
It is important to notice that when the body is turned so
it no longer faces you straight on (front or back), the exterior-contour-center-line
on the ovals is NO LONGER IN THE VISUAL CENTER of the body! Check the above
illustration to see what I mean. If you decide to draw the exterior contour
center-line, but you don't adjust its location to match the pose view, you
won't have an accurate sense of the true gesture.
Gesture Intro Page 
Skeletal
Foundation
Stick: The following
are the key elements for organizing a "stick" figure:
The line of action Three
ovals -- Head, Ribcage, Pelvis Pivot
points Long bones
Tilts and angles Contour
center lines of front and back torso, and face
Projection
and volume augmentations: While good as a foundation, the stick
figure does not adequately express projection of form, volume, or relative
position in space. There is more you can do to express these important factors
in the posing model:
The shortcomings of the stick figure
Showing projection Application
of the projection concept to the stick figure Simple
volume solutions Relative
position in space
Loosen up:
Using the stick figure foundation with the projection and volume augmentations,
you can loosely organize an expressive gesture sketch:
Compare the "contour" method to the
stick-start method Importance
of the free-going mark The line of
action and stick are construction lines Adding
relationship and rhythm
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Rebecca Alzofon
can be e-mailed at rebecca@art.net
This page created February 14, 1998
1998 by Rebecca Alzofon. All rights
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