The hour glass figure.
Drawing the hour glass figure.
Our bodies vary so much that I am only going to give a few basic examples of how to portray them in a drawing. I will only be dealing with what I consider to be the four main female body shapes. The Hourglass, The Pear, The Apple & The Banana, which of course can be worked with and manipulated to produce your own finished portrayal of a female nude.
The actress Marilyn Monroe was said to have the perfect hourglass figure.
The first body shape is the hour glass. The hour glass figure was derived from of course the hour glass which was an instrument used for measuring time. This means that like the hour glass the waist is noticeably narrower than the hips and bust which in turn should have equal proportions to each other thus creating the hour glass silhouette emphasising a curvier shape with broader hips and larger breasts.
To decide the proportions of my subject I used the same principles as set out in How to draw the female body for absolute beginners. and then added two vertical lines of equal distance from the centre line to set out the approximate hip and bust width.
Next starting at the shoulders, making sure that my bust line touched the outer vertical lines, I gently began my sketch making sure that I curved the lines in towards the waist just above the naval so that the curve looked natural and not too abrupt. I then continued my line back out to the outer lines at the hips, just above the pubic region to form their widest point. Then I continued on down toward the thighs again making sure that my line curved naturally on down the leg. To exaggerate the hour glass shape; I decided to cross the legs of my subject but you don't have to do this. Once I was happy with the overall body shape I began to define it a little by adding some details. First I started with the shoulders and rib cage. I have pushed the shoulders back slightly on my subject to emphasise the breasts by pushing them out and forward. See, Breast position. You can do this by slightly raising the height of the shoulders so that the angle into the body appears slightly steeper. Remember also that by pulling the shoulders back you reduce the amount that is visible from the front so you will need to make them appear narrower. The rib cage will become more prominent also with an hour glass figure as the subject is slender in build . This is because there is little body fat on the frame and having a thinner waist means that the upper body will appear more shapely and better defined as will the stomach, thighs and legs. Once this was done I set out the position of the breasts as in How to draw the Female breasts. I took a little time over the breasts as their look and appearance can make or break your finished sketch. I altered them several times until I was happy with their shape and overall look. The placement of the nipple is also very important as this can dramatically influence the appearance of the breast so be sure to take the time to position them correctly.
Below are some more examples of how the hour glass figure will look in various poses.
The hour glass figure from behind.
When drawing the Hour Glass figure from behind, it is important to remember that the waist is narrower than the shoulders and hips. Also even though the subject is facing away it is still easy to see her hour glass shape from the line of her shoulder to her buttocks. Her stomach is taught and pulled in and you can still see the outline of her rib cage. Again the placement of the breast is important as this helps to show the position of the subject.
The hour glass figure kneeling.
Notice how the waist narrows on both sides and then gently curves back out over the buttocks. Again I have pulled the shoulders back slightly to emphasise the breasts and rib cage. Note also how the stomach area is flat and gently curves to the pubic area.
The hour glass figure reclining.
Notice again how the rib cage is visible above the waist line. Again it is easy to see the tuck in the waist as it narrows toward the hips. The stomach appears flat and there is a gentle curve toward the pubic region and buttocks. It is important again to note the position of the breast and nipples in relation to the upper body.
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