Use Your Mannequins to Create Figures in Motion!

Here is where you will learn to create figures in motion from the mannequin frames of the previous lesson. Remember those proportions that you have so far? You're going to use them to accurately create the human body in various poses.

If you're not comfortable imagining structures to build the form on, you can either go back and create 'skeletal' sketches in correct proportion until you feel comfortable or buy an artist mannequin at a local art store. These little wooden dolls are very important investments in building a good foundation if there aren't any models to be found!

In addition, wooden mannequins can obviously hold a pose longer than a regular model. This will come in handy in more ways than one!

Either way, you should have a clear idea of how the anatomy of the body is measured before you begin this lesson.

1. Figures in motion through lines

On this section of the lesson, you will focus on balance. Think of a pivoting point. For the most part, our pivoting point lies in our spine. Knowing this can help you pivot where the neck, the shoulders, the hips, and where the crotch can move.

As the spine is one form of balance, you can think of the legs or arms as the counter balance. Realizing this, you can make believable motions as you try to balance your character.

This time, create just a simple sketch of the body from the previous lesson. However, where the lines run parallel, have the lines run in an irregular fashion. Don't over-pivot. At the same time, think about how to counter balance the character using the legs.

Basically, keep in mind how to depict the legs as showing signs of weight transfer. Think about hip movements to aid you. How would your hips look like if you placed weight on one leg? If it is done correctly, you will have movements that resemble figures in motion through static poses.

2. Figures in motion through arches

On the next level, we need to think about the range of our movements. Instead of having the spine as the pivoting point, we are going to use the shoulders and the crotch. This will help you focus on the arms, the lower body, and the legs, respectively.

Now, while imagine how the arm pivots, use your circular marquee and mark the circumference that the arm, torso, and the legs will extend into. These are the range of motions possible on the human body.

With those basic pivots, you can add secondary pivots to the body such as the knees and the wrist. At this point in time, it's not necessary to find all the pivots. What this does is that it will help you think about the range of motions through the pivot points.

To draw figures in motion properly, knowing as many points as possible and its pivot points are very useful!

3. Figures in motion through measurements

While thinking about the lines and the arches of your character, also think about how to construct the character with a good proportion so you can apply those lines and arches. One method is to memorize how the body measures up with the head.

The other method is to break down the head measurements into manageable pieces to be further divided into the correct number of divisions. For instance, the bottom of the crotch is exactly half way of the total height of the character.

Similarly, the points under the chest and below the knees signifies the quarter subdivisions. Use these to help guide a body that is bending.

Once these essential points are in place, then you can think about the arches, lines, and how the weight will transfer on the body.

Feel free to experiment.

4. Free form figures in motion

The final process of learning involves putting everything together into forms that resemble motion. For illustration purposes, try to sketch out some action poses like running or jumping. Again, we are not concerned about muscle mass or any build up of the mannequin frame.

All we want to make sure is that you have a good understanding of how motion is constructed. If you can, add a little bit of foreshortening. This can get a bit complicated depending on the position, but it's easy if you keep in mind various ways of simple figure construction.

For starters, use the pivoting points you just learned. Compress those motion circumferences into manageable 'ovals' to represent how the each of the body parts will look like in perspective. Use lines to figure out the perspective values so you know how 'big' those appendages will exist inside the circle.

At this point in time, it's all up to practice. The more sketches you do, the better you can see these frame constructions. Remember to have fun learning!

Return from Figures in Motion to Paint Human Anatomies.
Return from Figures in Motion to the 2d Digital Art Guide.