Muscles in Motion : Figure Drawing for the Comic Book Artist [Paperback]

Glenn Fabry (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2005

Comic-book artists are constantly on the lookout for sources for creating those super-human muscles, and now MUSCLES IN MOTION is ready to heed their cry for help. While most anatomy and life-drawing books focus on average bodies, MUSCLES IN MOTION looks at the musculature of bodybuilders and athletes, and then builds on those physiques to create exaggerated forms that are still strikingly dynamic and realistic. With more than 800 action drawings taken directly from the sketchbooks of legendary artist Glenn Fabry, plus Fabry's remarkable commentary on those drawings, this is the single best book on action anatomy for comic-book artists, beginning, intermediate, and advanced.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Glenn Fabry is best known for his work with DC Comics' Vertigo imprint, including The Authority, Preacher, and Hellblazer, soon to be a feature film starring Keanu Reaves, entitled Constantine. He is also the artist of Marvel's bestselling graphic novel, Daredevil: Human Target, written by director Kevin Smith (Clerks).

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Watson-Guptill; 1st edition (June 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0823031454
• ISBN-13: 978-0823031450
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 0.4 x 10.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #521,040 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

60 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Clueless, May 30, 2005

By 

MIlhouse VanHOutten - See all my reviews

This review is from: Muscles in Motion : Figure Drawing for the Comic Book Artist (Paperback)

I have just finished the book of Glenn Fabry "Muscles in Motion". The cover of the book was very promising and I thus have pre-order it. I was quite disappointed when I received it. I expected this book to be a kind of step by step guide to draw muscles or at the very least, a book which could teach me a trick or two from a pro. Nada! This book contains quasi no instruction. It's even hard to explain the contents of this book.
They are hundreds of drawings made from freeze-frame images from a videotape. Pages and pages of images of bodybuilders or dancers following each others like a broken down animation. The drawings are too sketchy and small to be a book of references and Fabry doesn't explain anything. I really don't know who would be interested in buying this book but I prefer the more easier approch to figure drawing and muscles from Loomis, Jack Hamm or even Bridgman.

N.B.: I took the liberty of scanning a few pages from the book. You be the judge...

36 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Muscles In Motion, May 24, 2006

By 

Tracy Lindsey - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Muscles in Motion : Figure Drawing for the Comic Book Artist (Paperback)

I am a professional artist, and figure drawing is a favorite subject. I have collected many 'how-to" books on figure drawing over the years, and, therefore, have seen many systems of innovative anatomical figure construction. With that said, I must say that Muscles In Motion is a disappointment.
Although there are some quite good individual drawings by the author,Glenn Fabry,the vast majority of the book is drawings from photographs of female bodybuilders in posing or exercise routines. Fabry draws well, but his approach shows little to no
insight into the constructive nature of the figure, which I see as the main reason for purchasing a 'how-to" book on this subject in the first place. Also, I find it strange that the author has used, almost exclusively, female bodybuilders as his prime models for this subject. Yes, men and women do have the same basic muscular system, with the skeletal structure accounting for the greater differences. However, in a treatise on the human muscular system in motion, I feel that using a more traditional approach with the male physique as the primary example would be more appropriate for the subject, while using to a lesser degree,female examples to show the similarities.The female form is absolutely beautiful, but using drawings of the female form in its muscular extreme to illustrate muscular motion in general, I find quite atypical for the subject matter.Had I been able to see an excerpt from this book first, I would not have been interested.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars No muscles at all, May 31, 2006

By 

Mike Jensen (Oklahoma, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Muscles in Motion : Figure Drawing for the Comic Book Artist (Paperback)

This was not what I expected. There is no instruction provided as to anatomy or musculature, just many sketches mostly from a female workout tape. The "muscles" were non-descript. Also, if you're considering this for a younger artist, several of the sketches have annotation that they were drawn from a "stripper" tape and are somewhat provocative both in content and "clever quips" as commentary by the artist; inappropriate to my way of thinking. I've returned the book to amazon.com despite having to eat the postage.