Tutorials, Art and Website Design

The comparison between vertical and horizontal measurements ensures that the figure in the drawing is not too thin, wide, short, or long. By constantly comparing horizontal and vertical observational measurements to these same proportional measurements in the drawing as it progresses, it is possible to ensure that the drawing stays in proportion to the visual observation.

A variety of large and small measurements are taken from the figure, and compared both horizontally and vertically. It is always good to take some large measurements, for example the mid-point of the figure, and marking the corresponding mid-point on (or offset from) the drawn plumb-line.

Eventually, a number of faint crosses (placements) are drawn, resembling key landmarks on the figure, which have been measured and checked. These landmarks can frequently be the top and sides of the head; mid-point of the figure; the bottom and sides of the feet; knees, elbows, shoulders and other parts that outline visible forms of the figure.

Gesture Drawing Stage

The measured placement crosses are used as an accurate guide for the gesture drawing, which aims to be a concise and simple depiction of the figures’ gesture. The pencil should be used as gracefully and lightly as possible. Generally, ghostly C-curves and S-curves can be used alone with a minimal number of small straight lines for more complex areas. The largest curves should always be drawn first, as they will govern the poses’ gesture. It is adviseable to practice this stage with tracing paper fixed with masking tape over reproductions of master figure drawings and paintings. Here are more examples of my gesture drawings.

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These can be easy or difficult to find depending on the figure, the pose and the location of the easel. The first step is to search for a decent vertical alignment like the one shown in my above (unfinished) line drawing after Charles Bargue. It can be useful to incorporate a stationary object into your vertical alignment, like a chair or box, as they are reliable objects that will not change position over the course of the figure pose.

Once at least one series of vertical alignments is found, an imaginary line can be seen through them and represented on the paper with a lightly drawn vertical line (plumb-line). The topmost point of the figure is lightly marked near the top of the plumb-line, leaving about one-sixth of the paper clear at the top. Also, a point is marked near the bottom of the plumb-line, again leaving about one-sixth of the paper clear at the bottom. This tends to give roughly two-thirds of the paper in which to draw the figure.

Measured Placements

The marked plumb-line serves as a known place which relates to the vertical alignments in the observed figure. The next step is to measure how many times the measurement from the top of the head to the top of the shoulders goes into the height of the figure. In a standing pose this is regularly between six and eight (and often not a whole number – something like six and two thirds).

It is important to measure as accurately as possible as many other measurements are gauged from this. The drawn plumb-line is then divided into the number of head heights. The plumb-line was divided into six in the gesture sketch below.

The plumb-line in the above sketch is faintly visible, and it is possible to measure the height from the top of the head to the top of the shoulders, and see how it goes into the plumb-line six times. This measurement is also used to gauge horizontal measurements from the plumb-line. For example, the left side of the neck to the outermost of the left hand is as wide as two of the vertical head measurements.

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If you are oblivious to Oblivion…. please read on, for soon you won’t be. Oblivion is the latest in The Elder Scrolls series, re-defining the benchmark for interactive virtual 3D environments (nevermind the fact that it has definately set an entirely new benchmark for single-player RPGs), and it does it extremely well on the Xbox360.

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Whether you’re a fan of animation, film, TV (e.g. World Cup 2006), or especially the new wave of next-gen console games on the xbox360 and soon the PS3, your visual experiences will be significantly enhanced by the superb clarity of the image on a HD (High Definition) Television. TIP: If you are considering buying one of these gems - do make sure you get an LCD and not a Plasma. Read more »

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Story Writing Exercise 2

Jack stands motionless, his clothes billowing gently. He is in the middle of a large expanse of dry, barren desert, there is nothing but sand and haze in every direction. He shades the sun’s glare with his hand to his forehead, scanning his environment slowly and intently.

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Story Writing Exercise 1

A fat, squat chicken is stuck on a roundabout, sparsely populated with trees and surrounded by several lanes of traffic moving fast, beeping and swerving past in a blur. She appears to be in a panic, and keeps trying to find an appropriate place to cross, but every place she dashes to on the outside of the roundabout is just as unlikely a place to cross as the last spot. Too dangerous. She scratches her head, puzzled and frustrated. What can she do? Read more »

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