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Force: Dynamic Life Drawing for Animators
last four minutes. This exercise is excellent for learning about the importance of body language, and also silhouette. In one class, the model took a reclining pose that clearly showed her scurrying away from an opposing force. The students behind her, though, who had an unclear view of the story, thought she was relaxing on a beach. Another point I make to students is to go after character. People are so different from one another. As a side job, I have been doing caricatures since college. My clients always ask what feature I’m going to exaggerate. They look at me confused when I respond that I draw the forceful shapes of their head. I never pick a particular feature. I try and stick to my initial reaction, my gut feeling about the person. Leroy Neiman is one of the few artists I know of that shows on-location drawings as part of his work. Most of you probably know him for his loud colored, impressionistic paintings of famous figures, especially in sports. His books have some great reportage drawings. The best one is “Leroy Neiman, Art and Lifestyle.” I also self published a book entitled “Reportage 01”. Here you will find observations of New York City and Disney World. Inner thoughts, outer reaction Let’s start with drawings of people thinking to themselves and trying to capture those thoughts. Here there is no outside stimulus.
Here is a typical moment captured by Mike. The upward lift of this woman’s head makes it seem as though she is in casual thought. This woman is deep in thought; her burning cigarette shows us the progression of time.