Drawing the Head and Figure: A How-To Handbook That Makes Drawing Easy

This book is a very easy to understand guide to figure drawing. It is packed with information on how to work up good drawings of the Human body as well as faces, eyes, clothes etc. Leafing through the book the initial impression is that it is quite cramped in terms of layout but this is due to enumerate examples that you can refer to. The tone of the book is very measured and encouraging: unlike many other books on anatomy the instructions are precise and clear. All this is enhanced by Jack Hamms' clear, eminently readable drawings. I found the material on faces and eyes really good and without a doubt my drawings have improved after consultation of this book. Simple guides for grasping rudimentary forms in drawing arms, legs etc are the best I've ever seen, allowing you to get something passable down on paper which is very encouraging for more in depth study which is also presented here. I quickly learnt more about the form of the face, figure and clothing in four or five quick sessions than 7 years ownership of Burne Hogarths' "Dynamic Figure Drawing" ! I recommend this book for depth of material covered, readability and concise simplicity: if you are interested in the Human figure this is one of the best additions to your reference section you can make!

Crammed with examples of every aspect of the head and figure. An astounding number of examples of how to draw eyes, ears, noses and all of the other parts of the body. By simple copying the huge number of examples you would improve your drawing skills. Sadly all of the drawings are now very dated.

If you ever heard of one of the perfect drawing books - this is the one to go and buy. Tons of illustrations and very easy approach. Totally recommend this book. Rene, Denmark

One of a series of drawing books authored by this artist; it's a very old-fashioned type of instructional handbook with a clear1950s aesthetic to it, probably aimed at students interested in pursuing advertising illustration of the period. Despite it's aged appearance, the fundamental points are sound; it is very useful for understanding how to tackle the relevant details of the figure, recognising the underlying anatomy of the male/female figure and face and dealing with how to derive measurements from observation. As a possible supplement to other drawing books this has real value and should prove useful to students getting to grips with figure/portrait drawing at a basic level. A rather slim paperback, but certainly a valuable one to have for expanding one's knowledge of figurative drawing.

Dating from 1963, this is a great volume especially, if like me, you're a crummy/failed/aspiring comics book artist. A lot of modern day super hero comic book artists could benefit from studying this book (and quite a few established professionals...). If you want to learn how to draw and you're a fan of stunning comic book artists like Steve Rude or Alex Ross, who also do painted artwork and have been influenced greatly by the likes of this author and Alex Loomis, this is a worthy extravagance. Remember to start sketching on A3 and use a 6B pencil or a fine charcoal point to mimic mr. Hamm's artistic approach and you'll be fine! An excellent book.

There is no other book on figure drawing that you will ever need. Reviewers who say otherwise have a chip on their shoulder as they do not wish to dedicate the time required to iron out flaws in their own artistic ability. Not only is this a good book, it has rekindled and transformed my life drawing.

Probably the best figure drawing book in the world.

I purchased this book due to the reviews. I was looking for a book that simplifies drawing of the human figure. I need to know for more illustrative purposes than for fine detailed art. I didn't want proportions that involved females being 11 heads high, as too many books suggest as the ideal. I want natural proportions which this book does have. I also wanted simplified drawings to enable me to get positioning better. Well this book succeeds for me in some ways. It is very detailed although not as mind bogglingly so as many books. (Having just read drawing on the right side of your brain, I think this book appeals to those people looking for more formulaic/analytical processes in their drawing). I was not bad at drawing people at school, but classes were limited. I am too shy to go out with a sketch book, yet I know for me that is the answer. However, I have limited myself to books for the moment. This book is very proscriptive and not very creative. It's very analytical in parts (to me unnecessarily so), and I don't find that very helpful as I can't interpret the information given as I am not so clever as others in that particular way. Other people will enjoy this approach more I think. I'm afraid I like some of the more pedestrian aspects of it, where you can copy a range of noses, eyes, mouths etc. and see positioning of legs and so on. I liked the simple stick drawings. I didn't like the way some of the more potentially useful diagrams were utilised however, as I found the drawings so faint that they were hardly visible in places (you are supposed to sketch lightly so the marks may easily be erased, I felt however that they should have been drawn more clearly in the book so I could see what the processes actually were. I shall have to guess in some instances.) It is very exact in some instructions, like drawing hair etc. I prefer more general suggestions in terms of mark making. I will certainly use this as a reference to dip into and I enjoy the drawing style a lot more than many modern books. It is a shame that the hair styles are dated, although rather attractive if you like a vintage look which I do. I would not be able to follow this from cover to cover however, as much of the information along with all the diagrams are simply not something easily absorbed and understood by me. The diagrams referencing geometry are those which I find unhelpful personally as I like to draw what I see not what I can analyse with ruler and protractor. Or rather as being mathematically challenged, I am not up to the job. If it looks right, then to me it is right and I am happy with that. I like more flexibility of approach. I always drew faces by looking at them rather than memorising proportions. I could see what looked right for myself, I had a good likeness too, but that is years ago. I purchased the book more for the figure aspect, which I had less experience of. I wish I had ready access to the human figure in all it's guises, or failing that a reference book of poses for me to draw. This way of learning is a step removed and although helpful in some ways, distinctly limited in others. I am on balance happy to have this book though. It does provide some interesting material.

Excelente libro

Secondo me è il miglior libro concernente le tecniche per il disegno dei volti e di tutte le parti anatomiche del corpo umano. Ne ho comprati altri, ma credetemi questo mi ha davvero lasciata a bocca aperta. Anche se in inglese, le immagini parlano da sole e in modo molto molto dettagliato. Con questo libro tutti possiamo diventare degli artisti. Lo Adoro letteralmente e ringrazio l'autrice per averlo scritto.

I really like this book! I ordered it after watching a flip-through on YouTube. I feel like it is one of the few books for figure drawing that one can really start reading and understanding even as a beginner (which I am, so take my review with a grain of salt). It offers a good overview of the things one should consider and how one might want to think about certain subjects. It looks a bit antiquated in some ways, but in a much more charming way than such books often do: I find it very beautiful to look at and fun to explore. If I could only keep 3 books on figure drawing, this one would probably be among them (together with the two books by Roberto Osti).

Un livre pratique et à un prix très raisonnable, des conseils du maître de l'illustration et ses méthodes de construction du corps-humain

Anatomy, interesting and retro, every page full of instruction and drawings. How hips and shoulders cooperate in angles, pencil handling in figure sketching. Explaining and drawing necks, the outstretched art of men and women. Nine pages of hand drawings. Bone and muscle prominence in the chest for men. Putting structural principles to work with hips and shoulders. The copyright 1963, its slightly dated with ladies in dresses and men in suits. But Jack Hamm covered a lot of ground and given a lot of tips and tricks!