Body Details: Female Torso Drawing Techniques!

A female torso drawing requires extensive knowledge on the skeleton and muscle placements. Not only that, it requires good judgment on the artist’s part to create a balance between musculature and the skeletal system to portray the right amount of femininity for a character.

As potential clients want artists to portray the female form that caters to their specifications, you will need the flexibility that comes from learning the muscle and skeletal forms. For example, some may require a tall skinny model while others may request a muscular Amazon woman.

Even though there are about the same amount of muscles found on the female body as the male body, the female body is radically different. This lesson will cater to these differences so you have enough knowledge to make the proper judgment calls.

Let’s get started!

1. The muscle groups

Just like the male figure, the female torso drawing will use the same muscles found. Try to memorize and have a good firm grasp of where the positions of the muscles are.

From top to bottom and back to back, the major muscle groups are as listed: the trapezius; the deltoid; the Infra spinatus; the teres major; the pectoralis major; the latissimus dorsi; the serratus magnus; the external oblique; the rectus abdominis; the gluteus medius; and the gluteus maximus.

Some of these muscles do not have enough of a presence to be shown through the skin. However, they are still good guidelines to help you pinpoint flow points for your female character. This is where variation happens: knowing what muscles need to be emphasized to get a certain look.

2. Female torso drawing: front view

You should always start off by sketching your artistic mannequin. It will allow you to get the initial proportions correctly so you can concentrate on filling it up with muscle and skin.

Divide the body up into three heads starting from the chin. As you slowly progress down, you will notice that the breasts lie just below the first division line. Depending on the breast size and type, you can make many different variations so long as it is around this area.

The next big change is the lack of love handles. Unlike the male form, the love handles are not as noticeable. Furthermore, it sinks inwards to create that hourglass shape of the hips. Be sure to pay extra attention to this part of the body and how it interacts with the pelvis bones.

Speaking of the lower section of the female body, as the love handles do not hang over the pelvis bone, make sure to note where the waist ring is.

That is, variation on the slimmest part of the hourglass figure comes from deciding whether or not you want the waist ring right on the belly button or above it. Both of these positions are still acceptable bending points for the body.

3. Female torso drawing: back view

The back view is where most of the changes will come from. If you were doing a muscular female figure, then you would still need to draw the back in a fashion similar to the male figure.

However, since a slimmer female form is usually desired, you will need to reduce the amount of muscles at the back. This is where learning the skeletal form comes in handy.

The most noticeable feature of the female back is the shoulder blades. Of course, you still need to subtlety show off where some of the muscle groups are. It is a fine balance between drawing the skeletal system underneath and watching it complement the muscle groups.

Another noticeable characteristic is the buttocks region. On the male torso, the love handles create a distinct separation of the lower pelvic. With the female figure, the buttocks merge together with the lower back to form one smooth flow point.

On the flow diagram, this is depicted by transforming the circular flow points up towards and above the waist ring. This will also allow you to figure out where the slimmest part of the hips will be located at.

4. Female torso drawing: side view

The side view is fairly straight forward on the female torso compared to the male torso. You will still need to know where the latissimus dorsi, serratus magnus, and the oblique muscles are.

The difference is whether or not you will choose to show these muscles depending on the muscularity of your feminine character. This leads to the first noticeable section on the side view: the ribcage.

To be specific, do not get these muscles confused with the ribcage itself. On the female form, depending on the thinness, you will need to suggest the individual ribs in the cage. Tailor your flow points to cover just the outline of the ribcage and fill it correctly with light brush strokes.

The second major section is the absence of the love handles. As mentioned before, there is no distinct separator between the upper and lower half of the body. Use the smudge tool to your advantage to merge the two sections together.

Also, do not forget to suggest the pelvic bones as this will smoothly link to where the legs should start. Moreover, draw the indentation between the gluteus medius and the gluteus maximus. It is not as strong as the male torso, but it is still there nevertheless.

Always reference the flow diagram from your artistic mannequin to help you will deciding where to put muscles of the female form.

In conclusion, a female torso drawing (plus all the different variations that can happen) can be easily made if you know all the muscle groups and develop your own flow points, based on an artistic mannequin, to put these muscle groups together.

Happy drawing!

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