Spirit of the Pose [Paperback]

Karl Gnass (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2005

Spirit Of The Pose is a fine art book in a quality custom paperback format, hardcover-style stitched binding, featuring the dynamic figure sketches, philosophy and drawing advice of master draftsman and figure linguist Karl Gnass - drawing guru to the artists of the animation industry and to fine artists alike.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Karl Gnass has been teaching figure drawing for over 35 years. He has storyboarded for many animation studios, among them Disney Television Animation, on such shows as Aladdin, Gargoyles, Darkwing Duck and The Little Mermaid. He helped develop character expressions with anatomical breakdowns for Stuart, in the feature Stuart Little, and characters in other films, including Harry Potter with Sony ImageWorks. Karl teaches life drawing and storyboarding in many of the major studios in Southern California, including Disney Feature Animation, DreamWorks, and Sony ImageWorks. He also teaches a ‘Dynamic Figures In Maya’ class for 3-D artists at Disney Feature, along with public classes at the American Animation Institute in North Hollywood, CA.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Gnass Studios (January 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0975281208
• ISBN-13: 978-0975281208
• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #785,317 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pricey, but Fantastic, August 22, 2008

By 

Grant Beaudette (Missoula, MT United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Spirit of the Pose (Paperback)

It took me two years to get around to buying this book because I was hoping to get a deal on a used copy. But I've come to see that there aren't any used copies, probably because no one wants to part with theirs. And now that I've broke down and bought a copy I can see why.

The beauty of the drawings should go without saying. Glen Keene's forward properly praises Gnass as an inspiring guide for the rest of us who are likely to get spun around and lost in drawing the human figure.

Text in this book is short and sparse, but offers an insightful angle to pursuing art. The one saying that stands out in my mind is that there's no one out there keeping the secrets of drawing from you. I'm not sure why I find that comforting.

I'm definitely not a big advocate of spending 45 bucks on a book. But if you spend it on Spirit of the Pose, I doubt you'll regret it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Spirit of the Pose, June 17, 2009

By 

Michael Zakian - See all my reviews

This review is from: Spirit of the Pose (Paperback)

A must for anyone interested in learing to draw people! Karl Gnass is a skilled draftsman who has complete mastery of drawing the human body. He has been a key figure in the Hollywood animation industry for decades--as an animator, storyboard artist and script writer--and knows how to capture the movement--or inner spirit--of any pose. The book is essentially a collection of his drawings. The minimal text is inspirational, rather than instructive. I would have given 5 stars if there was more, and more effective, explanations of his technique. But you can learn alot from studying how he analyzed and rendered the body.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A glimpse at the work of a master, February 19, 2005

By 

George Taylor "George" (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Spirit of the Pose (Paperback)

Behind the scenes, artisans help build the illusion of Hollywood. And behind these people are the unsung heroes, the teachers that train the artists that work in the Hollywood community. Karl Gnass is one of those great teachers. Spirit of the Pose allows us a glimpse into the inner thought process of a brilliant draftsman. His confident line and thorough mastery of human anatomy speak volumes in a book that lets the drawings speak for themselves. A must for any artist seeking the classical training that is so absent in our art schools today and a book to proudly share shelf space with the sketchbooks from the other great masters.