Anatomy sketches 03

I did some more anatomy studies from posemaniacs. I'm still unsure if they are helping or not. I've been doing them in under 90 seconds and when I look back at them I can't really remember drawing them (sounds odd!) but I think what is happening is the I'm focusing on the shapes and negative space so much so, that I don't look at the overall figure and think about how the limbs relate to it. It's like I'm seeing it as an object to be drawn and not a human figure. This is a great method for people beginning to draw because if encourages you to draw the shapes that you see rather than the symbolic shapes you have established in your mind. I think the difficulty I'm having is switching back to that symbolic way of looking at things, only the symbols I need to remember are the shapes of the human anatomy and how they relate to each other in a 3D space and as an organic whole.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that when somebody untrained begins to draw, usually they are wired to the left side of the brains. To copy and image accurately, it becomes important to draw using the right side of the brain (Betty Edwards has written a famous book all about this) but when if comes to drawing things from your mind, you have to use the right side of your brain the recognise information and store it for the left side of your brain to use later when drawing without reference. I'm so used to copying images that my mind is not really actively studying what I am drawing.. so I think some slower-paced anatomy studies will give me the time I need to make those associations. Also, like any learning, some activities based on what I've learnt will help. I'm currently participating in the character of the week activity at conceptart.org which will encourage me to put what I've learnt about the human form into practice and also give me the opportunity to receive some feedback.