2-minute gesture

I have been drawing gestures for a week now so I'd appreciate any critique to see if I'm on the right track! Thank you so much

https://imgur.com/a/hxtJ7U5

• Vn Caheo edited this post on March 24, 2024 8:35am. Reason: Image not shown

Thanks so much for sharing! I think you have some lovely, expressive linework in what you've shown, and I really like the range of poses you studied! The figures have a lot of character, which is definitely a big point for gesture drawing (my favorite type tbh). I really hope you're enjoying yourself too - I like to throw on an audiobook or some music while I draw, and just treat it like a chill time where my only job is to make the pretty pictures dance, haha. Depending on where you want to take your drawing skill, it can be really important to practice letting your brain turn off in order to train your hand-eye coordination, especially when you're doing sketches, gesture, + figure drawing in general.

In terms of critique, I'd say one thing you could focus on is internal linework (not sure if there's an official drawing term for that but that's what I call it). Basically, you don't always want to focus on the outline of the figure - take a look at what's inside too!

Some great examples in your drawings:

Take a look at the neck and shoulders of each figure you drew - on the top right, you have this really nice pencil stroke shading in where the figure's collarbones would be, and I really love the swooping line below their pelvis - it shows how the figure has stretched their legs. On the top left figure, there's this tiny curved line going from the figure's right shoulder to their jawbone, where the top of the trapezius muscle is. Heck yeah, that's great gesture! It's descriptive, and shows the viewer how the figure is shaped in 3D.

Here's an example sketch:

https://i.pinimg.com/736x/b9/5c/62/b95c6267fd7cc5e7b2b6843c560b01ee.jpg

Check out all the lines that go inside the figure, instead of just tracing the outline. Take a look at the top of figure's right hand, and the way the sketch lines swoop across their body, from elbow to index finger. Figure drawing especially can get really into using lines to make a shape look 3D, instead of just an outline. Humans are really complicated shapes to draw, and that means a lot of different pieces and shapes that interact.

Here's another sketch - check out that line from shoulder to hip (also I love the dude's hip swivel pose, it's great)

https://blog.dorotheum.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Giovanni-Battista-Tiepolo.jpg

These aren't instructions so much as just a thing to focus on going forward - feel free to take it slow, and play around with it! Gesture is supposed to be loose and flowy. And for every drawing you may not like much, your hand is still training itself to make beautiful lines no matter what.

• Junabout edited this post on March 24, 2024 7:47pm.
• Junabout edited this post on March 24, 2024 7:51pm.

Hello, Vn. Nicest job on your sense of organic flow in your organic lines and shapes. Your drawings rock! Yet, I'm not getting enough of that comedically lightest touch in your lines yet. How would you like to please just do 5 minutes of 30 second poses, all drawn from your non-dominant hand?

As a result, your lines will become completely loosest. COMPLETELY!! For most details, please try out watching and drawing along to some gesture drawing tutorials by Proko and more.

Thanks.