Drawing the Human Body: An Anatomical Guide [Paperback]

Giovanni Civardi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 28, 2001

Overflowing with sketches that capture a wondrous repertoire of angles and poses; this is the ultimate guide to drawing people “to life.” The author shows the male and the female body from multiple positions; reveals typical proportions; describes each part of the skeleton and each muscle; extensively comments on physical morphology; and offers a plethora of gestures and actions. A unique combination of technique and imagination.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Civardi and Constance take two entirely different approaches to drawing the human form. Civardi's is a detailed, classical manual, informed by his study at the Faculty of Medicine, Milan, and his teaching of sculpture and drawing. He describes each part of the skeleton and each muscle, using frontal, lateral, and dorsal projections. Academic libraries will want this unless they already own Civardi's previous trilogy, Drawing Human Anatomy, Drawing the Female Nude, and Drawing the Male Nude (LJ 3/15/96). Constance's book is a more lively and accessible volume, progressing nicely from quick-pose sketches to more ambitious interpretations of both the character and the form of the person one is drawing. Constance covers a variety of media and explores light and shadow, clothing and drapery, and varying perspectives. Her use of cropping, pastels, collage, and monotypes attest to her preference for creative expression over accuracy. The result is an outstanding book for public libraries. For an advanced book appropriate for both academic and public libraries, see Robert Beverly Hale and Terence Coyle's Anatomy Lessons from the Great Masters (LJ 7/01).
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 168 pages
• Publisher: Sterling; 1st edition (June 28, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 080695891X
• ISBN-13: 978-0806958910
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 6.7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #187,245 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing, August 7, 2001

By 

ErDravn - See all my reviews

This review is from: Drawing the Human Body: An Anatomical Guide (Paperback)

I was in the book store looking for a figure drawing book, but every book I would pick up either had a very small amount of figures to draw from, or the drawings themself were poorly done. I was lucky enough to come across this book. The figures in this book are amazing with great attention to detail. From the first page to the last it is filled with just about any pose you can think of.

I also liked the way the book went into the specifics of the hand, feet, and face, legs, arms etc. and shows many differnt variations. It is also very well balenced in showing both male a female figures.

The wording in the book can somtimes seem very clinical but it is very informative on human anatomy. I would definatly recommend this to anyone looking for a book to use as a reference for anatomy and is trying to learn how to draw the body in differnt poses.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great detail, June 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Drawing the Human Body: An Anatomical Guide (Paperback)

On flicking through this book I was struck by the detail on the soles of the feet. This was just a random page that opened and it was so real, with numbered lines pointing out what to look for as the foot moved into different positions. In reading the preface there is a quote "everyone sees what they have learned to see" and this was definitely the case for me. I have already spent some time just looking at the sketches, fascinated by the different detail as the body, both male and female, arms, legs, hands, face, etc are moved. There is detailed information as to the differences we should look for between the male and female form when drawing the human form. A great resource book.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars In defense of this book and Civardi, March 3, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Drawing the Human Body: An Anatomical Guide (Paperback)

I was prompted to write a review after reading the 'one star' review by Artshogun titled 'don't believe the hype'. That review was extremely unbalanced.

Civardi is a gifted artist who has authored some valuable books, primarily on figure drawing. However, this book has one major flaw which is not the fault of the artist. Most of the reproductions are extremely faint, using less than half of the available dynamic range of the printing process. Consequently you must have good vision (which I don't) and plenty of light to get something out of this book. There is no excuse for this and it's the fault of the publisher. If any book requires clarity then it's one that deals with the often-subtle tonal variations required to depict the human form.

Artshogun claims Civardi has 'failed to maintain accurate proportions' on many of the figures. I see no obvious errors of proportion.

Artshogun also states that the 'sausage-smooth approach to rendering his figures...has squashed the life and movement out of them'. It is true that the poor reproduction has had a severe flattening effect on many of the drawings. However, this is not really a book on drawing technique, or portraying the human form expressively. Instead it uses pencil to capture valuable anatomical information in an simple, elegant and unaffected way. To quote from the foreword by the artist. "Instead of expressively interpreting the form, I preferred to document it using a rather neutral, almost linear art style."

While Civardi's 'linear hatching' rendering technique may not be your cup of tea (Civardi has a broad range of drawing styles, which can be seen in many of his other books, which focus more on expression.), it is without question clear, consistent, and informative. Consequently, and most importantly it provides the perfect jumping off point for an artist to interpret the human form using his or her own technique.

Aside from the previously mentioned flaw, this is a valuable reference on drawing the human body.