Artists often use a jointed wooden mannequin, or draw one in their heads, to work out a pose. You can draw any figure the same way, using the forms from Building Objects from Forms: an egg for the head, boxes for the chest and hips, cylinders for the arms and legs, and balls at the joints. Ours are dressed in plain clothes so you can see each part.
Key idea
Build the body from simple forms: an egg for the head, boxes for the chest and hips, cylinders for the limbs and balls at the joints. Limbs bend only at the joints.
Why it works
Boxes and cylinders show which way each part faces and how it turns in space, which a flat outline cannot. And bones do not bend: an arm bends at the shoulder, elbow and wrist, a leg at the hip, knee and ankle. Marking each joint with a ball reminds you where the bends are allowed.
Worked example: Build a pose
How do you draw a mannequin figure waving?
- Draw the line of action (see The Line of Action).
- Place the egg head, the chest box and the hip box on it, tilted the way the body leans.
- Put balls at the shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees and ankles.
- Join the balls with cylinders. The waving arm bends at the elbow, not in the middle of the forearm.
Answer: Line of action, then the egg and boxes, then joints and cylinders.
Common mistake
People bend arms and legs between the joints, like rubber hoses. That looks boneless. Limbs bend only at the joints: shoulder, elbow, wrist, hip, knee and ankle.