Complete Anatomy and Figure Drawing

by John Raynes

The ability to draw the human figure is an essential skill for the trained artist. And for the independent amateur, painter John Raynes’s new book is the equivalent of an art school course. With meticulous renderings of the skeleton and the muscles, he explores how the underlying structures support and give shape to the body. Many of the drawings are shown step-by-step, starting with a photograph of the model and accompanied by a discussion of such issues as balance and motion, light and shadow, composition and volume. Through drawings of different body shapes, from underweight to overweight, both nude and clothed, the student learns how to capture the character as well as the appearance of the subject.

Genres: Art, Drawing, Nonfiction

144 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2007

Reviews

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I checked this out from the library because it seemed a step above the average artistic anatomy book--a lot of the other anatomy books simply featured studies by the artist with no explanation, or they only featured male anatomy.

I copied almost every anatomical figure in this book and I feel I improved my grasp on figures quite a bit! Very informative, with a solid progressive layout.

It was funny how flabbergasted the author was by the anatomy of bodybuilders. Check out this quote: "in my opinion the massive musculature achieved by body builders is at the extreme end of the spectrum of normality." Extreme and almost abnormal!! Lol

[Todd · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like John Raynes linear style, he is straight forward, although the book lacks enough verbal language to put it all together in the end.(meaning that it deals with parts then sums up at the end)-it does not go into how to build the form from the ground up, leaves out much on proportions and such. Pretty good as a reference book to have around, nice drawings and some good individual explanations of muscle groups.

[Martha Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have reviewed several Anatomy and figure drawing books for artists. I must say with resounding assurance that this book is by far the best I have come across. As a figure drawing student, I found the second half of the book extremely helpful. The photographs and drawings are very illuminating. I purchased this book for my own art reference library. That is saying a lot. As I tend to borrow books from the library first before purchasing them.

[Kevin de Ataíde · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very engaging introduction to basic anatomy for the artist and short-and-sweet procedures for figure drawing. Good for an introduction, and reasonably short.

[CannedBeans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! Unfortunately in my country it is illegal to look at naked people (boobie and pp), this is my last message since the NUDE patrol (Never Under-Dress Ever) are currently looking over my shoulder waiting to put me in handcuffs, wonderful book nonetheless!

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book going all the way from the inside to the outside. Had to return to library but could use as a reference over and over again.

[Reeb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent information about the skeleton and muscles for the artist and the illustrative drawings are superb. Inspired by the art work in the last chapter. John is very talented.