Gesture drawing

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Gesture drawing of a live model (two poses on the same page)

Main article: Figure drawing

A gesture drawing is a laying in of the action, form, and pose of a model/figure.
Typical situations involve an artist drawing a series of poses taken by
a model in a short amount of time, often as little as 10 seconds, or as long as 5
minutes. Gesture drawing is often performed as a warm-up for a life
drawing session, but is a skill that must be cultivated for its own sake.
In less typical cases the artist may be observing people or animals going about
normal activities with no special effort to pause for the artist. For example,
drawing from people on the street, performers, athletes, or drawing animals at
the zoo.

Purpose[edit]
The primary purpose of gesture drawing is to facilitate the study of the human
figure in motion. This exploration of action is helpful for the artist to better
understand the exertions of muscles, the effects of twisting on the body, and the
natural range of motion in the joints. Basically, it is a method of training hands to
sketch what the brain has already seen. Staying "focused" means sustained
concentration. Gesture drawings may take as long as two minutes, or as short
as five seconds, depending on what the focus of the exercise is.
The practice allows an artist to draw strenuous or spontaneous poses that
cannot be held by the model long enough for an elaborate study, and reinforces
the importance of movement, action, and direction, which can be overlooked
during a long drawing. Thus, an approach is encouraged which notes basic
lines of rhythm within the figure. The rapidity of execution suggests
an aesthetic which is most concerned with the essence of the pose, and an
economy of means in its representation, rather than a careful study of modeling
of light on the form.
For some artists, there is a calisthenic logic: just as an athlete warms up before
exercising or participating in sports, artists use gesture drawing to prepare
themselves mentally and physically for a figure drawing session. The fast pace
of gesture poses help an artist "loosen up" to avoid a stiff drawing style.
The artist who undertakes gesture drawing also receives the benefits of self-
training their drawing ability. This kind of very rapid drawing of the figure builds
(through the act of frequent repetition) an instinctive understanding of human
proportions which may aid the artist when executing more extended works.
For some artists, a gesture drawing is the first step in preparing a more
sustained work. Other artists, who seek to capture brief moments of time in a
direct manner, consider the gesture drawing to be the end product.
Drawing from life is often preferred over photographic reference as it allows the
artist to view the model from multiple angles and without distortion of the lens or
lighting. As well, the repetition of short drawings without pausing forces the
artist to work intuitively.
Drawings longer than two minutes are usually not considered gestures, as they
inevitability allow the artist more time to measure and plan the drawing, or to
begin to define the form with modeling. Once the artist begins measuring,
erasing, or otherwise improving the drawing, they have ceased to gesture draw
and begun rendering. They will be improving the complexity of their current
drawing, but they are no longer practicing their ability to draw correctly from an
instant impression.

References[edit]
 Nicolaïdes, Kimon (1975). The Natural Way to Draw. Houghton
Mifflin. ISBN 0-395-08048-7.
 Doug Boomhower. "Gesture Drawing Captures Movement". Learn to
draw expressively. Retrieved April 30, 2020.