by Effie Moore Salem

Created on: February 12, 2010   Last Updated: April 27, 2011

Figure drawing demands a study of how the body appears when still or when moving. An artist must be able to see the subtle differences between a smile, a frown, a raised eyebrow, as an example. Actually, there are many ways to approach figure drawing when you are starting out and have no idea how to begin. But the best way is to have some easy guide that will get those first rounded, straight, or wavy lines down on paper.

At first, forget about action drawing of the figure and concentrate on the basics, the oval shape of the head as seen, and not as a round shape as it is known to be. Take one area at a time and concentrate on getting it right, and then go on the next area. Practice drawing the head, as an example from many angles and many viewpoints.

Practice is what eventually results in successful figure drawing. Various exercises such as a seeing how each part of the body relates to the other, and how the figure looks while standing, how to fore-shorten the body when seated, and how the toes curls when seen at various angles all go into figure drawing.

When first learning how to draw human figures, try different methods. As an example, consider building a human figure with only ovals. Yes, that's right, large thick ovals for the head, an elongated oval for the chest, another for the hip area, or one long oval for the whole torso. Two elongated ovals for the upper legs, two skinny ones for the lower legs. For the arms, four even skinnier ovals, and yes, for the hands two ovals with an few indents for fingers, where appropriate.

For practice , don't be too careful. On a large sheet of paper place an oval in the shape of the face. Use a light shaded drawing pencil, or only barely touch the paper with a pencil. You may need to erase these later. Assemble the rest of the body. This character will be cartoonish, but that is the way  to learn to draw.

The eyes do not go at the top of the head but halfway down. For these, two small ovals placed horizontally will do. Underneath that, a mark for a nose and an oval for an open mouth. The arms can be attached to upper torso in any fashion, and once you have learned how to get the basic shape of the figure suggested, you can mark and erase until you get the action of the figure you desire.

Practice, practice, practice is what you need do. You also will need to learn to see. Yes, that's right. Begin observing the shapes of everything, even people in action. Don't bother about perfection, just have fun. Loosen up

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