HOW TO DRAW

How to draw a how body (human anatomy)

The Basic Figure

Create Your Chart From Heads

A well-proportioned figure, regardless of variations due to gender or such, is defined by the alignment of the joints, which is invariable (that is, we perceive something odd if it does vary). This is our groundwork for proportions. Draw your own chart with me as we go, it really helps learning the material.

Start by drawing an oval or egg shape (pointy end down) for a head, and mark down eight measurements, the last one being the ground.

The measurement (ideal male height = eight heads) was set down during the Renaissance as an idealization of the human form. It’s rather obvious that very few people are actually eight heads tall (even Northern Europeans, who served as basis for this model, are closer to seven heads), but this is still the best model to start with, as it makes it easier to grasp the alignments.

The Pelvis

Add the pelvic bone next, simplified as a flattened circle between marks 3 and 4, with the hip joints sitting on 4. Its width is roughly 1.5 to 2 head-widths. You can now draw the spine connecting the head to this most important part of the body, its center of gravity and stability.

The Legs and Knees

Let’s assume this figure is standing with feet vertically aligned with the hip joints. The knee joints sit on mark 6, as that line corresponds to the bottom of the knee caps.

When the leg is stretched out, the knee joint is placed on a straight line with the hip and ankle (left). But this straight line is virtual: to complete the leg, connect the hip joint to the inside of the knee cap, and then again, the outside of the knee to the inside of the ankle (right). This is a very simplified but accurate representation of the actual bone structure, and helps in drawing the natural look of the human leg, which tapers in from the hip, then staggers out at the knee and tapers in again. It also helps with placing the muscles at a later stage.

The Ribcage, Nipples and Belly Button

The ribcage-lungs group is the third important volume of the body, after the head and the pelvis. Simplified, it is an oval that starts halfway between 1 and 2, down to mark 3; but it is best to chop off the lower part of it as shown here to imitate the actual rib cage, as the empty part between the two volumes is important: it is soft and subject to change (flat belly, soft belly, wasp waist) and it is also where the most torsion and movement happens in the spine. It’s good to be aware of that and not attach torso and pelvis together like two blocks, as that would "block" your drawing’s range of motion. The width of the oval is roughly the same as the pelvis for now.

Two more details here: the nipples fall on mark 2, just inside the sides of the head, and the belly button on mark 3.

The Shoulders

The shoulder line is about halfway between marks 1 and 2, with the shoulder width 2 to 3 head-widths, but its apparent position can vary a great deal. To begin with, it’s slightly curved down, but in tension the shoulders tense up and the curve can itself turn up and look higher. Furthermore, the trapezius muscle, which from the front appears to connect the shoulder with the neck, is highly individual; if it’s very muscular, or carries much fat, it can make the shoulder line look so high there’s no neck; inversely, an underdeveloped trapezius, often seen in very young women, gives the impression of a long neck.

This brief digression into non-skeletal details is to insure there is no confusion between the actual position of the shoulder line and its apparent placement in a fleshed-out body, some examples of which are shown below.

The Arm, Wrists and Hands

Finally, the arms: The wrists are on mark 4, slightly below the hip joints which sit on it (you can test it out for yourself by standing up and pressing your wrists against your hips). The fingers end roughly at mid-thigh, which is mark 5. The elbows are a slightly complicated joint that we’ll examine in detail later, but for now it’s helpful to mark them as elongated ovals sitting on level 3