Had a fun exhibit at the Getty that just closed Sunday. "
Disegno (which means both "drawing" and "design" in Italian)
: Renaissance Drawing from 1520-1600." We went and I got in a few sketches like the one on the left, (a copy of a sketch by a guy named Bloemaert (really!)--he drew in that typical style for the era--lots of curvy, balloon-y muscles strung over some wild proportions)(I tried to keep a bit of his Mannerist flavor (like the giant arm), but reel the anatomical believability in a little for my "interpretation").
The sketch on the right is from a Houdon bust in marble (not in the
Disegno show). We sat on a bench in the middle of a gallery and I tried to get a decent drawing of this guy (who looked a lot like
Robert Helpmann of
"The Red Shoes" and
"Tales of Hoffman"). I kept struggling, grunting a little
"Dam-mit...." every few minutes, making Blair shush me repeatedly with the admonition,
"There are children near!"
5 comments:
Beautiful work. Very impressive getting into the show. I like all the Michael Powell Red Shoes links that you added.
I need to get the discipline to do figure study of some kind every day. It's what everything flows from.
You inspire again Marty. My own entry for later shows my own deterioration.
El! Don't think in terms of deterioration--think in terms of expansion!
You are kind with yer comments, and if these inspire you, I am glad--but everybody else's drawings always look better than your own. It's the artist's curse.
Did a Google search on "Robert Helpmann" to get these links. Clicked on "images" and found a bunch of sites/tumblrs that made me want to sit and draw these great old film faces!
The Bloemaert anatomical study is so great. I used to have a particular interest in the muscles of the back. My anatomy teacher would talk about how the muscles on the front of the torso were easy, but the interaction of the back muscles was so complex and subtle, it required special study. There's nothing quite like a well drawn back.
I wish I could find an image of the Bloemaert original, b'cuz the anatomy he puts on his back is totally wild. I tried to "correct" it as best I could from what I know of back anatomy.
'Tis true--the back is hard! And once you start getting the muscles down, it's easy to let that knowledge get in the way of organizing the underlying forms (position of shoulder blades vs. ribs being the trickiest, I think).
Tommy, your only problem with drawing a great back is getting somebody to hold the mirror steady while you study yrself!
The shoulder blades get that range of motion floating over the ribs as they move toward the spine. But they're nice and locked down as they originate from the shoulder. I think of that as I visualize what the muscles might look like in an invented character. I should really study more.
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