Modeling the Figure in Clay, 30th Anniversary Edition: A Sculptor's Guide to Anatomy (Practical Craft Books) [Paperback]

Bruno Lucchesi (Author), Margit Malmstrom (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1996 | Series: Practical Craft Books

For thirty years, Modeling the Figure in Clay has been an indispensable anatomical resource for people who think, see, and understand form best in the round: sculptors. In the thirtieth anniversary edition of this classic work, master sculptor Bruno Lucchesi invites you on a guided tour of the human form. Follow him as he creates a figure in clay—literally from the inside out—starting with the skeleton, laying on the muscles to show male and female anatomy, and finishing with a complete figure sculpture with every detail of face and hair carefully modeled.
 
BRUNO LUCCHESI’s work has been added to the collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Brooklyn Museum, and the Dallas Museum, among many others. Lucchesi has received awards from the National Academy, the National Arts Club, and the Architectural League. He was a Guggenheim Fellow in 1962-1963, he won a Gold Medal award from the National Academy of Design in 1990, and was awarded the Polich Tallix Foundry Prize from the National Sculpture Society in 2009.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Bruno Lucchesi is perhaps best known for his smaller figures and is genre sculptures, but he also does major, large commissioned pieces. His sculptures have been added to the collections of the Whitney Museum of American ARt, The Brooklyn Museuem, the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, among others. He has received awards from the National Academy, which elected him Member in 1975, the National Arts Club, and the Architectural League, and he was a Guggenheim Fellow in 1962-63. Bruno lives in New York.


From the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Watson-Guptill (April 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0823030962
• ISBN-13: 978-0823030965
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 0.4 x 10.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #200,255 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

49 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Anatomical approach to the human form, April 6, 2000

By 

Sam Hunter "SamHunter42" (Harrisonburg VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Modeling the Figure in Clay, 30th Anniversary Edition: A Sculptor's Guide to Anatomy (Practical Craft Books) (Paperback)

Wow, what a book. I have been searching for the right book to help me build a human body that looked believable in sculpture and this is the one. Lucchesi creates the form by first creating an armature, then building a skeleton onto it (ribcage, pelvic girdle, etc.), then adding the muscles, then adding the skin. A must for anyone who would love to sculpt anatomy like Rodin and Michelangelo. Lucchesi's head book is just as good.

41 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Amazing book - but not exactly what I thought..., May 20, 2001

By 

Mona Gracen (New York State, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Modeling the Figure in Clay, 30th Anniversary Edition: A Sculptor's Guide to Anatomy (Practical Craft Books) (Paperback)

If this book was actually what I had been looking for, I would have given it 5 stars. However, it wasn't exactly what I had thought. It is not so much a "how-to" book as it is an illustrated diary of the artist's amazing process. This particular sculptor sculpts the entire skeleton, muscular system out to the finished sculpture you see on the front of the book. It's amazing but a little more detailed than I believe a beginner such as myself needs - I was a little daunted by the entire process but also quite in awe. The photographs are tremendous. This book would probably be better suited to students in advanced sculpture.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I Wish I Could Give It Six Stars, October 26, 2001

By A Customer

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This review is from: Modeling the Figure in Clay, 30th Anniversary Edition: A Sculptor's Guide to Anatomy (Practical Craft Books) (Paperback)

This book, along with the other titles in the series: "Modeling the Head in Clay" and "Terracotta," is an excellent resource for beginning sculptors. In fact, if I could buy only one book on sculpting, it would be one of these three (and most probably this one). The book is a walk-though of a single sculpture, which is instructive, but it is also a great reference. Mr. Lucchesi's style is realistic with natural poses, and quite pleasing -- it exudes peace and repose. Ms. Malmstrom has a gift for photographing and describing exactly those parts of the process most interesting to students. The medium is clay, and I'm working in wax, but I have not found this to be a problem. Be advised that it concentrates on the female figure, so an additional anatomy book may be helpful for proportioning male figures.