Erin Meads - The Quick Pose: A Compilation of Gestures and Thoughts on Figure Drawing

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QUICK POSE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Special thanks to Mary Sauer, Kristal Lindheimer, Michelle Erickson, and Amy Christensen for helping me get my thoughts into words. Thank you to the fantastic models from the Department of Visual Arts at Brigham Young University. Without them, this publication would not exist. Thank you to my students and for their patience with me. Often times I feel as though I am the student. Thank you to my teachers and to those who have taught me throughout my life. I appreciate your willingness to share. Thank you to my family and friends who always show great love and support. And lastly, thanks to my husband, Matt, for his constant love and encouragement.

Copyright

Copyright 2015 by Erin Meads

All rights reserved.

Artwork, text, and book design by the author.

Drawings are on 18" x 24" newsprint with cont or charcoal.

Bibliographical Note

This Dover edition, first published in 2020, is an unabridged republication of the work originally published by Erin Meads in 2015.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Meads, Erin, author.

Title: The quick pose: a compilation of gestures and thoughts on figure drawing / Erin Meads.

Description: Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 2020. | This Dover edition, first published in 2020, is an unabridged republication of the work originally published by Erin Meads in 2015.

Identifiers: LCCN 2019039451 | ISBN 0486841367 | ISBN 9780486841366

Subjects: LCSH: Human figure in art. | Figure drawingTechnique.

Classification: LCC NC765 .M395 2020 | DDC 743.4dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019039451

Manufactured in the United States by LSC Communications

84136701

www.doverpublications.com

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2020

CONTENTS

FOREWORD

by Mary Sauer

I met Erin in 2007 when she and I were both undergraduate art students. We later were apprentices together in the same studio when we were still developing as artists, in an environment rich with talented instructors and mentors. We have been in a number of workshops together over the years in locations as varied as Jackson Hole and Manhattan. As I have looked back over my art education, I see how rare great instruction to art students really is, and how difficult it can be to get a holistic understanding of traditional drawing as skill-based art diminishes in importance throughout the country. Many art teachers would rather spend time discussing the philosophical meaning of a gesture rather than the basic principles of how a drawing achieves convincibility. Frustratingly, distortion and obscurity are encouraged and emotion is valued more highly than expression with accuracy. It was my experience in art departments at universities for both my Bachelors and Masters degrees that the only departments that valued traditional drawing skills were the illustration and animation programs. I find it amazing that many in the art world, including some art teachers, dismiss the need for strong figure drawing skills in these and all other disciplines as commercialism instead of embracing those skills as invaluable to an artists development.

I believe that the concepts learned through drawing the figure apply to all aspects of art-making and can be interpreted by every artist differently as they develop their abilities. The figure has always been my favorite subject in art, both in painting and drawing, and building a portfolio of excellent figure drawings is, in my opinion, vital to creating everything from graphic novels to historic narrative paintings to abstract expressionist work. I have always admired Erins talent to capture the figure, and her drawings truly are a testament to her understanding of the concepts that drive her work. Ever since I have known her, she has had an uncanny ability to translate a three-dimensional model into a two-dimensional reality and has done us all a great service by articulating her methods for doing so. I believe that artists who read this text will have the most clear and concise explanation of drawing quick poses that I have ever come across without having to take a handful of costly workshops from teachers across the country, if you are lucky enough to know which ones to take. Improved drawing does take time, but I am convinced that reading this book and utilizing its concepts will drastically speed up that process and help your drawings reach a more sophisticated level as you learn how to correct your misconceptions. But mostly, I hope that the information in this book will continue to increase your understanding of drawing the figure and feed future generations the fuel to combat obscurity of representational art.

INTRODUCTION

My purpose in writing this book was not initially for instruction. I simply wanted to make some of my recent drawings accessible to those who might be interested in them. Although the idea was there, beginning work on the book got put off for over a year, mostly because I just didnt make the time to sit down and put it together. Looking back now, Im glad for the delay because during that time frame, my ideas, methods, and confidence improved as I continued to teach figure drawing. I wanted to share how this happened, so I ended up writing a book with instruction.

Figure drawing is not an easy task. In fact, learning these concepts can be down right frustrating in many instances. From my own experience in my art education, I often gained the understanding of a certain principle when I heard it taught by more than one person. Since a standardized curriculum for art education across the country does not exist, these concepts are taught in many different ways (if even taught at all). Sometimes a principle in figure drawing that is presented by one teacher will not sink in until another teacher presents that same principle to you again. Perhaps this text will do this as I offer another perspective on figure drawing, and specifically, the quick pose.

I am lucky to have been able to study with some inspiring people. Each has given me something in the development of my own drawing method. Reflecting on their teachings has ultimately given me my figure drawing class prospectus, which is essentially the text of this book. I was surprised at how quickly the book evolved while writing, and I give credit to the people who sowed seeds of inspiration in my head. I believe every artist I have studied with has contributed in shaping me into who I am today and instilling in me methods and beliefs pertaining to art. Although it is second nature at this point, I step back from my work and realize how heavily I rely on their teachings each time I draw.

It may be important for me to note here that while progressing as an artist, it is often typical to experience what I call artistic identity crises. The question during these times is often,