I’m a traditional sculptor with more than 25 years of experience. Being a dyslectic student in the 2000s, I developed a systematic approach to translating medical anatomy texts into visual information that I could use while sculpting. All the anatomy books for artists at the time were text-centered. My reference sketches became quite popular among colleagues. It was clear that visual artists perceive information best when it’s visual, and that is how I got the idea for my first book. Now the Anatomy for Sculptors handbooks are bestsellers among visual artists striving to better understand the human form.
I wrote...
Anatomy For Sculptors: Understanding the Human Figure
This anatomy handbook for artists gives you everything you need to create realistic human body forms. Of course, only long hours of practice can hone your skills and let you become a masterful visual artist. Having a live model in your training also makes a big difference, but one is not always available. However, reliable anatomy references can be an excellent substitute – as long as they really are good!
Only about 2-5% of the book is text! Anatomy For Sculptors: Understanding the Human Figure contains visual references for hundreds of body postures and motions. Regardless of what composition you choose for your artwork, you don’t have to guess anymore. This book will show you the exact form of every muscle from any angle.
While the West was busy with postmodernism, the Soviet world cultivated social realism based on the 19th-century figurative tradition of the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. East Germany was no exception with its own figurative tradition at Dresden Academy of Fine Arts. Gottfried Bammes was a professor of art there, and he further developed classical anatomy studies by introducing a more scientific approach. Illustrations in Der Nackte Mensch are precisely measured and reliable, and each of them introduces a new way to look at human anatomy. Concepts such as wire-framing and splitting organic form into geometric shapes appear here. This book is full of ideas, and it has been a huge influence on how I perceive human anatomy. Gottfried Bammes is, in my opinion, the greatest anatomist of the 20th century!
Gottfried Bamme - The naked man. Hand and textbook of anatomy for artists VEB Verlag of Art | 1982 | ISBN: 3364000166 | German | 480 pages Shown with special reference of their own tasks, objectives and methodological problems. With around 840 individual anatomical drawings by the author, over 120 examples of masterpieces of the fine arts, model 190 single shots and many students work.
Eliot Goldfinger’s book is very precise, reliable, and not too lengthy. Its systematic approach reminds me of a medical anatomy book, but it has been adapted for artists. The book is consistent in its depictions of human anatomy, and you will find each anatomical structure depicted from set angles: front, side, top, etc. It’s not always easy to find reliable human anatomy references, but this is one of them.
Eliot Goldfinger, a realistic sculptor and instructor of human and animal anatomy, has designed and written a reference work for artists and art students on the visual and descriptive components of human anatomy. The format is simple and accessible; all information about one aspect of a topic is set forth on facing pages. For example, the anterior leg muscle is illustrated in a series of precise anatomical drawings and well-lit photos, with text on origin, insertion, action, structure, and how it relates to creating surface form directly opposite the pictures. Unique to this book are photographs of a series of…
Frédéric Delavier is an artist and a bodybuilder, and he’s written a unique book. Although Strength Training Anatomy is popular with the bodybuilder audience, it is very useful for visual artists as well. Instead of just showing muscles in static positions, this book emphasizes motion and demonstrates how muscles look when being worked.
Over 1 million copies sold! With new exercises, additional stretches, and more of Frederic Delavier's signature illustrations, you'll gain a whole new understanding of how muscles perform during strength exercises. This one-of-a-kind best-seller combines the visual detail of top anatomy texts with the best of strength training advice.
Many books explain what muscles are used during exercise, but no other resource brings the anatomy to life like Strength Training Anatomy. Over 600 full-color illustrations reveal the primary muscles worked along with all the relevant surrounding structures, including bones, ligaments, tendons, and connective tissue.
Dr. Paul Richer was a professor of artistic anatomy at École des Beaux-Arts at the beginning of the 20th century, and Robert Beverly Hale, an American artist and instructor of artistic anatomy, translated Richer’s text and extended it with his own valuable commentary. This book is an absolute classic. It’s somewhat similar to Goldfinger’s book, only with a more significant emphasis on the movements of upper and lower extremities. It’s got precise drawings of the skeleton, side-by-side drawings that show anatomical structures with and without the skin. Side-by-sides help you recognize anatomical structures in real life. I got a lot of inspiration from this work when I made my book.
Artistic Anatomy is widely acknowledged to be the greatest book of its kind since the Renaissance. The original French edition, now a rare collector's item, was published in 1889 and was probably used as a resource by Renoir, Braque, Degas, Bazille, and many others. The English-language edition, first published 35 years ago, brings together the nineteenth century's greatest teacher of artistic anatomy, Paul Richer, and the twentieth century's most renowned teacher of anatomy and figure drawing, Robert Beverly Hale, who translated and edited the book for the modern reader. Now Watson-Guptill is proud to reissue this dynamic classic with an…
Andrew Loomis worked in editorial and advertising in 1930s America. At the time, most skilled artists were preoccupied with experimenting and high art. Meanwhile, the growing consumer culture required a lot of professional artists to work also on advertisements. This Andrew Loomis’ work is a manual meant to explain complicated human anatomy concepts in a simple manner – a sort of an ABCs for visual artists. It’s an excellent book for beginners!
The human head and hands are the most difficult elements in figure drawing, but world-class illustrator Andrew Loomis' classic primer offers the solution. Revered among artists for his mastery of figure drawing and clean, realist style, Loomis' hugely influential art instruction books have never been bettered. "Drawing the Head and Hands" is the second in Titan's programme of facsimile editions.
Act Like an Author, Think Like a Business is for anyone who wants to learn how to make money with their book and make a living as an author. Many authors dive into the literary industry without taking time to learn the business side of being an author, which can hinder book sales and the money that can be made as an author.
This resource serves as a guide to mastering the art of financial literary success and to help avoid the mistakes that many authors make while learning the ropes on their own. This book helps authors “think outside…
Act Like an Author, Think Like a Business: Ways to Achieve Financial Literary Success
Do you want to make money with your book? Do you want to make a living as an author? There’s more to doing so than simply writing and publishing your book. Many authors dive into the literary industry without taking time to learn the business side of being an author. This could dramatically hinder your book sales and the money you can make as an author. Without a guide such as this, mastering the art of financial literary success can take you years, and you’ll be sure to make mistakes during the learning phase. Some mistakes could cost you money;…
Interested in
figure drawing,
the human body,
and
anatomy?
11,000+ authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them.
Browse their picks for the best books about
figure drawing,
the human body,
and
anatomy.
