Don Simpson - Figure Drawing Basics (Action & Structure)

1CartooningConcepts and Methods Part 1: Figure Drawing Basics, and Don Simpson 2000, all rights reserved. For individual use only. Classroom use without express written permis-

sion is strictly forbidden. Please email [email protected] for information. Published by Fiasco Comics Inc., PO Box 64, Wexford, PA 15090. www.MEGATONMAN.com

Part 1: Figure Drawing BasicsAction & Structure



In our methodical approach to building up your confidence as an artist,we're going to tackle something simple at firstour friend the stickfigure. Go ahead, draw one right now!

A reasonable stick figure at this point should contain a midline for thespine, two arms, two legs, and a circle for the head. Fingers for handsand lines for feet are optional, but being the conscientious craftsmanthat you are, I know you'll want to include them.

Now draw your stick figure running, jumping, falling, walking, running,climbingsee how many poses you can come up with. The record is4096!

Don't worry about niceties like exact proportions at this point. Gettingyour point across is everything. We'll be getting fancier a little later on.

The Stick Figure



Okay, so anybody can draw a simple stick figure. But the point I'm trying to get across here is that, moreimportantly, everyone recognizes what a stick figure representsa person! Isn't that amazing?

Cartoonists are able to communicate even with the most elementary of pictures. Show your drawings to yourfriends and see if they can tell what your stick figures are doing. If they misidentify some of your drawings,that's okay. Many poses will be open to interpretation. Just compliment them on their keen perception andhead back to the drawing board!

Conveying specific actions and even emotional states of mind with a few quick linesand I dare say as fewlines as possibleis an important first step towards drawing fully realized figures. If you can accomplish thatwith your limited stick figures, think of what you can accomplish with even more tools at your disposal.



A More Sophisticated Stick FigureLet's use a slightly moresophisticated stick figure,one that is shaped a littlemore like an adult person.As before, don't be overlyconcerned with correctproportions right now. Stayfocussed on depictingactions--leaping, swinging,golfing, rowing, sitting, etc.

We've added a line across theshoulders and a line acrossthe hips, as well as definiteelbow and knee joints. Don'tworry about making yoursticks perfectly straight lines,eitherin fact, slightly curvylines are more human. Anddon't even worry aboutgetting the curves right,eitherjust go with what-ever feels right.

Again, test your drawings outon others. If people can tellwhat activities your stickfigures are involved in, you'redoing great!



Our new, sleeker stick figure seems to lend itself to more gracefuland athletic themes. But try comical situations as well. You mayeven use some of your 4096 poses you came up with for theshorter, stubbier stick figure and see if they can be translated tothe more sophisticated model.

Your friends may tell you they like your older, funnier workbetterdon't be discouraged! Keep right on drawing.



The 3 Basic SolidsIt's time to let you in on alittle secret. The stick figuremakes such a convincingperson because it represents,in a minimalistic way, whatall people have got insidethema skeleton! Thespine, the arms, the legsallare represented in a simpli-fied way in a stick figure.

With the skeleton in mind,we can now add three shapesto our stick figures to makethem more real, one ofwhich we already have: theskull (the head), the rib cage(the chest), and the pelvis(hip bone). These are thethree largest bony masses inthe body. Use simple ovalsfor right now.



After you've drawn the spine,arms and legs to establish theaction of your stick figure,proceed to add the chest,hips and head to begin flesh-ing things out. See howquickly things are takingshape?

Keep the focus on the action, firstand foremost. If your drawingsdon't communicate the story yourtrying to tell, all the ovals in theworld aren't going to help you.

Build on a solid foundation:action and emotion!



The Main Line of ActionThe first thing you need todetermine is the main line ofaction for your figure. Forall intents and purposes, thatis synonymous with thespine. The first line youshould put down on papershould be that lineit deter-mines the entire thrust forthe rest of the figure. Limbsand even the head branch offfrom that.

Notice how the three basicsolidschest, skull andpelvisrelate to each otherdifferently depending uponthe arc of the spine.Continue the sweep of yourpose into the arms and legs.Keep your figures moving!

It's important to never losesight of your stick figure,because it represent theskeleton. And where bonegoes, flesh will surely follow!



Okay, so now every pose is starting to look like dancing.Oh well. You get the point.



Twisting and Turning Along the SpineThe spine conveys the mainaction of a figure because it'shighly flexible. The backbends, twists and turns at thewaist, and the head bobs allaroundand it's all thanksto our friend the spine.

Don't draw your figures witha single solid body mass.Move the should in relationto the hips, get your figuresto twist and turn. Get yourfigures to boogie!

Draw several figures wherethe shoulders are twistingand turning in relation to thehips. Make use of the flexi-bility of the spine.



Show your drawings to your friends. See ifthey can't sense a new mobility in your work.Say, aren't these figures twisting and turning,a-writhing and a-wriggling? I think they are!I still like your older, funnier work! Oh, well.



Fleshing Out the Figure With OvalsWith a solid grasp of the all-important stick figure, we'reready to add the neck, shoul-ders, arms, legs, hands a feetto our figures. Use simpleovals for now.

The oval is an all-purposeorganic shape which can bemolded into just about anymuscle or body mass.

Dont get bogged down inaccurate anatomy. Just getthe basic feel of the figure fornow. Youll be studyinganatomy later, and be able toapply that knowledge to yoursteadily growing understand-ing of the human figure!



Feel your way along the naturalrhythms of the body. Muscles arentsymmetrical balloon, but curvy,tapered shapes that dovetail into oneanother.

But perhaps were getting a bit aheadof ourselves. Theres another impor-tant consideration Id like to addressat this point, and its establishing asolid sense of the third dimension inyour figures.



Adding the Third Dimension

You can make your figures suddenly bursts off the page and come alive in three dimensions very easilynocomplex shading or heavy-handed lighting tricks involved. Just use variations of the three simple geometricshapes at leftsphere, cube and cylinderand youll be amazed at how your figures fill up space!

Sphere

Cube

Cylinder



Of our three basic solids,head, chest and hips, letsstart at the top.

Conceiving of the head as anegg is good for starters, but itwill only get you so far. Alight bulb shape is a bitbetter, and a wheel of cheeseis interesting, too.

There are two main parts tothe head: the skull and theface. The skull is somewhatlike a sphere with the sidesflattened (like a wheel ofcheese, while the face istriangular.

The Head

The wonderful thing about using simple geometricshapes is that now you can instantly see which way thehead is turning, and whether its tilting up or down.And you havent added all that many lines to your arse-nal. Its knowing where to put those lines which is key.

Well be extending this principle to the entire body, sofor now we wont do more than suggest the position ofa few of the faces features.

Eye line



I dont have much to say on this pagekinda like these guys.



The Torso in 3DIts popular in artistic circlesto think of the chest and hipsas two boxes. Its also equallyin vogue to think of is as twocylindrical shapes, or even3D ovals. Personally, Ivesettled on a hybrid set ofshapes of my own devisinga box for the hips, and achest that is a cross betweena beehive and a Chineselampshade. Thats the best Ican explain it.

Whatever shapes you decide onand its important because these are two of our three basic solids herethemain thing is to keep the spine in mind. Notice how the geometric shapes really make clear the twisting, turn-ing and bending of the torsos below. Theres really no ambiguity as to which way the figure is moving. Andsuch clarity only adds to the impact of your figures, their actions, and the stories theyre involved in.



Follow the same routine weve established. First, draw the main line of action, or the spine, to determine themain thrust of your pose, Then continue with the limbs of your figure as stick lines. Only now, flesh out yourthree basic solids (head, chest and hips) with geometric shapes to make your figures come alive in three dimen-sions. Work with it!



Use the 'stick' limb as the center line,or core, of your cylinders.

Both cylinders and spheresare types of 3-dimensionalcircles. By using them onour figures limbs, theybecome 3-dimensional. Liketheir 2-dimensional cousin,the oval, they can beendlessly tapered anddistorted into all sorts oforganic shapes, like thosefound on the human body.

Dont be afraid to bend andcurve your cylinders, andagain, dont be concernedwith anatomical accuracy atthis point. The main thing isgetting those limbs to bendand fold through 3-dimen-sional space, right off thepage!

Cylinders for Limbs

Notice how the flat the stick figureabove is. In the fleshed out 3Dfigure, theres no question as towhich parts of the body are closerto us, and which are further away.



This is really importantif your drawings arent beginning tofeel powerful at this point, no amount of lighting, shading, orgilding the lily is going to help. Get these principles down patbefore going further!

Cylinders, spheres and cubesreally give these figures thefeeling of thrusting towards us(or away from us), achieving a3D sense simply and effec-tively. They closely resemblecrude wire frames of 3Dcomputer programs.



Youre going further? Thats okay, heresstill another page of 3D figures. Ill justkeep beating the drum for cylinders...



Most of what I know about drawing I've learned from books. Below is a list of books I recommend for everyartist's library, particularly if you're in it for the long haul. These are all books that I have learned from, and inmany cases, continue to learn from. Study them closely.

A Select Bibliography

Comparative Anatomy (Human/Animal)

Cyclopedia Anatomicae by Gyrgy Fehr, Black Dog& Leventhal Publishers, Inc., ISBN 1884822878.

Human Anatomy/Figure Drawing

Atlas of Human Anatomy for the Artist by StephenRogers Peck, Oxford University Press, ISBN0195030958.

Drawing the Head and Figure by Jack Hamm, PerigeePress, ISBN 0399507914.

How to Draw the Human Figure : An AnatomicalApproach by Louise Gordon, Viking Press, ISBN0140464778.

How to Draw the Human Figure (Famous ArtistsSchool : Step-By-Step Method) by Howard Munce,Henry Holt, ISBN 0805015280.

The Human Figure : An Anatomy for Artists by DavidK. Rubins, Viking Press, ISBN 0140042431.

How to Draw What You See by Rudy De Reyna,Watson-Guptill Publications, ISBN 0823023753.

Dynamic Anatomy by Burne Hogarth, Watson-Guptill Publications, ISBN, 0823015513.

Dynamic Figure Drawing by Burne Hogarth, Watson-Guptill Publications, ISBN: 0823015777.

Figures in Action (How to Draw and Paint Series) byAndrew Loomis, Walter Foster Publications, ISBN1560100095.

The Figure in Motion by Mark Smith and ThomasEasley, Watson-Guptill Publications, ISBN0823016927.

Animal Drawing/Anatomy

How to Draw Animals by Jack Hamm, Perigee, ISBN0399508023.

The Art of Animal Drawing : Construction, ActionAnalysis, Caricature by Ken Hultgren, DoverPublications, ISBN 0486274268.

Animation

Cartoon Animation by Preston Blair, Walter FosterPublications, ISBN 1560100842.

Comics

Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud, Harperperennial Library, ISBN 006097625X.

Your Career in the Comics by Lee Nordling, Andrews& McMeel, ISBN 0836207483.

How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way by Stan Leeand John Buscema, Simon & Schuster, ISBN0671530771.

Cartoonist Don Simpson is the creator of Megaton Man, Border Worlds, Bizarre Heroes and many othercomic books. Since 1996, Don has been creating Megaton Man adventures exclusively for the Internet atwww.MEGATONMAN.com.

Figure Drawing Basics is the first chapter of CartooningConcepts and Methods, an instructional book Don iscreating to convey his approach to writing, drawing, storytelling and other aspects of making comic book art.Future chapters will delve into human anatomy, animals, perspective, inking, lettering and writing, amongother things. For more information and updates, please check with www.MEGATONMAN.com.

This book is dedicated to my wife, Judy.

Megaton Man and Gower Goose are and Don Simpson, all rights reserved.



Don Simpson - Figure Drawing Basics (Action & Structure)

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