Understanding human anatomy will help you achieve greater expressive ability in figure drawing. By understanding the many different aspects of the human form, you can better grasp how the figure works as a whole. For example, if you feel along the bone on the lower part of your jaw, you will notice that there is a small indentation about halfway between the chin and the back of the jaw. This indentation is to allow a blood vessel to pass under the jaw. The indentation helps to protect the vessel. The significance of this little indentation is that it affects the. | ER 3 Figure Anatomy Understanding human anatomy will help you achieve greater expressive ability in figure drawing. By understanding the many different aspects of the human form you can better grasp how the fig ure works as a whole. For example if you feel along the bone on the lower part of your jaw you will notice that there is a small indentation about halfway between the chin and the back of the jaw. This indentation is to allow a blood vessel to pass under the jaw. The indentation helps to protect the vessel. The significance of this little indentation is that it affects the curvature of the jaw. The jawbone is actually concave here rather than convex. A slender person who has little fat around the jaw will show this distinct feature of the jaw more clearly than a heavy person will. Knowing this little aspect of the figure can help the artist who wishes to express a thin person. In a way the study of anatomy increases your figure drawing arsenal. By studying the underlying structure you can develop a greater feel for the surface expanding creative possibilities. In essence the human form is made up of soft and hard tissue held together by tendons and ligaments. The bones form the underlying structure of the body and in some cases act as protection for delicate internal organs. Around and over the bones are muscles that are used to drive movement. The whole system is controlled by an extensive nervous system. The human form is capable of extreme movement and flexibility. The muscles that power body movement expand and contract causing surface changes to appear. Take a look at your arm. Hold it out in front of you with the palm down. Now twist your arm so the palm is facing up. Notice how the muscle beneath the skin move as the arm rotates. As the arm rotates some muscles in the forearm will expand and twist while others will contract to cause the 33 Figure Drawing with Virtual Models movement. Now bend your arm up at the elbow. The muscles of the upper arm will
