A WONDERFUL WAY TO STUDY THE HUMAN FIGURE
I just purchased a very good quality model of the human skeleton. The model is designed to be movable, and was created by a painter from the West Coast. The proportions of the skeleton are closely based on the anatomical drawings that appear in Dr. Paul Richer’s classic book, Artistic Anatomy.

A little bit underweight!
I’ll be using this skeleton as a starting point for helping my New Paltz students in their study of human anatomy as it relates to drawing and painting.
The first part of this study consists of making what’s called an écorché, using clay. Over time, students will create a three-dimensional miniature representation of the bones and muscles of the human figure. This is a great way to study the volumes and movements of the figure, and very good foundation for traditional figurative drawing.
Once we get underway with this project I’ll post some pictures!