Constructive Anatomy: With Almost 500 Illustrations

by George B. Bridgman

Book Overview

"Excellent. The most valuable, detailed anatomical studies (which are also beautifully drawn) of all parts of the figure." -- American Artist
"The best book on artist's anatomy available anywhere." -- Art Students League News
Countless artists and students since the 1920s have used this and other books by George B. Bridgman (for nearly 50 years a teacher at the Art Students League in New York) for a solid foundation and understanding...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0486211045
• ISBN13: 9780486211046
• Release Date: June 1973
• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.13 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.5" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

One of my Top 3 Bridgman books- great in drawing from memory...

Mainly for intermediate-level artists- it's actually *GREAT* for enthusiastic beginners. It has a little bit of *everything* depicting anatomy construction from memory. It's also great for general improvement; a few tips & tricks- an *excellent* reference for all working artists. This is the book that really turned me on to the genius that is Bridgman. At first glance it may not be immediately impressive, but flip to page 167 for a quick look at his cubed-construction of the head. It's Bridgman's brief but effective treatment of cube-construction in this book that really, really impresses me. Many books *mention* cube-construction for heads; many books show a brief picture or two. But not many show it with the precision & detail that Bridgman conveys in just a few short pages. It deals with figure construction mainly in its parts- for full-figure movement, check out Bridgman's Complete Guide, or his less overwhelming Bridgman's Life Drawing. Constructive Anatomy begins with hands, which in my opinion is the weakest part of the book. (Bridgman's 100 Hands is much, much better.) Arms are next and they're easily among Bridgman's best, although not all the drawings are crystal clear. Many of the BEST drawings in Bridgman's Complete Guide are taken from this book, and his depiction of arms here is definitely among them. The shoulder & neck briefly follow, and are above average in their depiction. Then it's time for that excellent section: the cubed-construction of the head. It's only a FEW pages- I don't want to oversell it. But in my opinion at least, it's worth the price of the book. Individual features follow: eyes, nose, ears and mouth are simply & accurately treated. This is a more *in-depth* book than Heads, Features and Faces- which is mainly a simple introduction to the basics. Maybe the BEST section in Constructive Anatomy involves the Torso. He describes more in a few pages than most books ever do- and with a precision & beauty that few seem to match. The pelvis, legs, knees, feet & toes finish this truly excellent work. If anyone's overwhelmed by Bridgman's Complete Guide, Constructive Anatomy is a simple & effective choice to make- Highly Recommended! In short: Along with Book of a Hundred Hands & Bridgman's Complete Guide, Constructive Anatomy is currently in my Top 3 by Bridgman.

Still the best anatomy book around

I have nearly ten anatomy books and this is the one I grab for most when I need to solve an anatomy problem while drawing or sketching. For the most part, Bridgman first simplifies complex anatomy problems into simple structures before exploring the muscle patterns into more complex detail. This allows the artist to see the particular anatomy problem as a proportional mass rather than a complex network of muscle fibers. For me, this makes the human anatomy much more accessible. For instance, he will take the torso and break it down into simple objects like cubes, triangles, and planes, illustrate them in their proper proportions, and then move forward into to more precise detail.I find this book not just educational but as a great reference as well.

best value of any book i've ever purchased!

this book is by far the best on figure drawing that i've seen. bridgman is an absolute master of the human form, and he breaks everything down into simple shapes to help even the novice. his realistic and beautiful drawings are anatomically accurate, and quite nice to look at! buy any of bridgman's books, including the brilliant "book of 100 hands", and you'll be treating yourself to an extremely inexpensive lesson from a true master.

Wow!

Lemme tell you something right now. This is one sweet little book! It gets two stars right off the bat because it's really cheap(unlike Hogarth). For a student who doesn't have an income, this really helps out. When I bought this this book, I thought I knew a little about human anatomy. Well, put it this way, I was wrong! This book is PACKED with anatomy! Thanks to it, I've been getting alot better. Now I'm starting to do a real study of this book, and I don't think I'll be disappointed.

Superb content, great price...

One of the few books that I constantly refer to in figure drawing. Although the content was written way back in 1920, the concepts are still as valid then, as now.The simple pencilled illustrations provide easy guidelines as to where one muscle stops and another begins. This enables one to draw a muscly figure with a few lines and shapes to show bulk and depth, especially with comic book illustration.Finally, the price is perhaps as great a drawing factor as the content. Some comic book artists swear by Geoge Bridgman's books. You might also want to try some publications by Jack Hamm.