The Nude Figure: A Visual Reference for the Artist (Practical Art Books) [Paperback]

Mark Edward Smith (Author)

Book Description

Series: Practical Art Books | Publication Date: June 1, 1998

For thousands of artists lacking access to figure classes with live models, this portfolio of superbly photographed models provides a life-drawing studio right at home. An extensive compilation of traditional life drawing poses includes female and male figures in standing, seated, reclining, and action poses, each shown gracefully in circular movement, taking in all views: front, three-quarter-front, side, three-quarter back, and back. Each photograph is beautifully composed and lit, providing artists with all the nuances of muscle structure, line, and gesture to inspire fully developed figure drawings and paintings.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mark Edward Smith, formerly of the The New York Times, is a world-class photographer whose published works include The Figure in Motion and books featuring grand European sites. He lives in Venice, Italy.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Watson-Guptill; 1st edition (June 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0823032329
• ISBN-13: 978-0823032327
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 0.6 x 10.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #605,715 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

77 of 79 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Do yourself a favor . . ., July 31, 2002

By 

ronaron (US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Nude Figure: A Visual Reference for the Artist (Practical Art Books) (Paperback)

I bought this book as a freshman in college, it being my first artist's manual on the human figure. And because it was my first, and I hadn't really shopped around for any other manual, I believed at the time that this was the best I could get.

And it turns out that this book IS the best I could get, if I'm ever in a pinch for bonfire fuel.

And why such a harsh (and admittedly cheap) shot, you ask? Well, this book is just all-around awful. The photos are dull and grainy, with practically no contrast. How am I supposed to read muscle definition or the interaction of skin and bone? The models look as if they would REALLY rather be somewhere else, with their tired mien and sagging, unoriginal poses. I don't know if that was the fault of the photographer or the models themselves, but in the figure classes I've been in, the most successful models were the ones that were motivated, molding themselves into their own dynamic poses without inch-by-inch direction from the instructor. This is a sad, sorry, artless book -- downright ugly. If you have to spend your money, please buy Sarah Simblet's 'Anatomy for the Artist.' Simblet's book is a work of photographic art in itself, as well as a thoroughly informative resource. Do yourself a favor, and leave 'The Nude Figure' on the shelf.

Or, you could always set it aside for those unexpected bonfires.

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Nude Figure, July 26, 2000

By 

T. Stocks (Coarsegold, California USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Nude Figure: A Visual Reference for the Artist (Practical Art Books) (Paperback)

If you are looking for a book with a vast array of different poses then this book is for you. But unfortunately, because of the number of different poses presented, they did not include different angles of the same pose. What I liked about this book was that many different models of somewhat varying body types were used. The fault that I find with this book is the relative lack of male reference photos. It seems that only about 10% of the pictures are of males. So, if you want a good reference book for the female figure with many different poses represented then this book is a very good choice. If you are looking for a good reference for the male figure then look elsewhere.

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars I expected more, January 12, 2000

By 

Toni L. Williams (NC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Nude Figure: A Visual Reference for the Artist (Practical Art Books) (Paperback)

I was quite disappointed with the quality of the pictures in this book. They were very grainy, some without much contrast. As far as the poses go, there were only a handful that 'worked' in terms of composition. Also the models tended to be too similar in size, shape, and ethnicity. The point of figure drawing is to develop skills to draw ALL shapes and sizes!

There are other books on figure drawing that are much better in terms of skill development but I am still looking for a good book of photos to draw from. However, this one is not it.