Three (Newer) Gestures

30 SECONDS

I believe for the time frame, this is one of my most successful gesture drawings. You can really see confidence in the drawing with a shorter time frame (3). Lines are drawn without the fidgeting and reworking of larger and more detailed drawings. Because you have little time, you don't think about the final product, or worry about the proportions. Yet they seem to just come to you. I love the simplicity of this drawing, there is so little there, but I can tell exactly the form of the figure, the stance, where each limb even should be. Because so much is hidden (1) the eye fills in the rest. This is the most difficult aspect of figure drawing. When something is foreshortened, or falls behind something, or juts from behind a head or shoulder, the mind wants to fill this part in. The leg, (2) on a two dimensional plane, seems to jut out of the head like some mutant fiend, but that's what I love about drawing. We understand that this is going into the distance ( I could have varied the line weight here so that it appears even more so to recede) If it does not make sense, we automatically are confused because we can't seem to fill in the missing limb or whatever it may be. This drawing has some difference in line weight, but mostly it's the form that makes it successful.

1 MINUTE

One minute drawings seem to lend a bit more to the forms of the hips and the ribcage. I put this one in because I like the stance, the subtle arch of the ribcage, ( I think it should be exaggerated a bit more actually) but I think it illustrates the relationship of the hips and ribcage nicely (2). This relationship is key, and I used some heavy line weight to really put an emphasis on these areas, where muscle and skin fold over bone. The proportions in some of the areas are a bit off, mainly, the small head makes everything look enormous, or the legs and lower body are a bit small compared to the rest.(3) Here is another example of the subtleties of line (2) and how the sketchiest looking lines can help to define forms in one way or another. The figure seems to be captured by these lines. I almost get a sense of contemplation and an emotion of attitude from the strokes. Figure drawing is important because our body language conveys emotion just as well as facial expression. It's important that we are able to recognize these things even in "stick figures" or in the long axis' of the drawings.

3 MINUTE

I believe this is my most successful gesture from the semester. There is something about the relationship between elements that intrigues me. The shape of the ribcage was worked a few times, but the proportions seem to make sense, even if I didn't draw the egg all the way through. The line weight (3) of the left thigh, brings it out from the body, and gives the figure a bit of depth. The way everything connects seems to work too. In my earlier drawings, I would use circles to connect thighs to hips, but getting rid of that makes for a more sensual, and less cartoonish approach and feel. Instead of drawing a circle for the elbow, I drew the contour of only the elbow (1). This makes it evident that the forearm is being covered up by the rest, instead of just having a line, which would render the figure an amputee. Something about that detail puts the forearms somewhere, maybe it's just because I know where they are, but I think enough detail is there to suggest, as well as detail from the emotion as well which leads us to believe the hands are somewhere near the face or head, even if not drawn in. The figure is grounded (4) and solid, but still with a sort of whimpering or stumbly sense of its center of gravity. I see a despaired individual in this gesture, and that's another reason I chose it. I think it is the best example of emotion in a gesture drawing of mine. Again, it's amazing how much personality can be contained within these small gestures, it inspires me to think of what can be portrayed in the hardness of muscle, softness of skin, aging, facial expression, body gestures, scabs, scratches, and wrinkles.