The Questions to My Answers

Where are the questions that got us here?

I've been drawing a lot lately. Black and white sketches of the human body.
It has been an eye-opening glimpse into how I perceive my world.
I have realized that while I am aware of what a human body looks like.. as a whole.. I am clueless to the intricacies and details of its form.

Show me a photo of a naked woman and ask me to sketch her... I will. In a few brief moments I will use my pencil to construct a rough drawing. When I am finished you will see her curves, her lines, her legs.. you will see her long flowing hair, you will be able to identify her as the woman in the photograph.
But ask me to specifically draw her hands.. ask me to only draw her lips, or her shoulders.. ask me to draw her cheek bones, or the curve of her stomach.
Drawing the individual parts is a challenge!
I think this difficulty comes from never fully questioning the details - never understanding how they flow together to create an complex design of human beauty.
Sometimes my sketch of a person looks slightly off.. it seems solid at first glance, but maybe a shoulder is crooked, maybe her torso doesn't quite line up.. Once I know why parts fit together, then I will be able to accurately explain them in my drawing.

To accurately capture the human form.. it seems like you have to stare beyond the general lines.. dissecting the "Answer" of the body until you have fulfilled the questions that create that form.

Q: Why do the shadows fall slightly heavier on the left side of her lips?
Q: How slender are her fingers?
Q: How much space is there between her eyes and mouth?

Instead of looking at a photograph of a person and trying to express their entirety.. it would serve me much better to understand the pieces that make them who they are. Once I comprehend the parts, then I will know how to draw them as a whole.






Andrew Tipton