How to draw a torso

If you are struggling with drawing the torso, I am willing to bet big on the fact that your torso drawings will improve as soon as you are done with this illustrated guide!

Now, I know most artists may say the back view is harder but I would argue that it only appears that way, from lack of exposure. Considering that characters need to face the viewer more often, the front of the torso is more important to understand as a comic artist. The torso is a difficult task to break down because of the many puzzle pieces aka muscle groups that have to be wedged together in order to construct a cohesive whole. Just like the hands, the torso can contort and bend in various ways that can make the process of learning even more toilsome. But as always, fear not because this tutorial aims to make this process of learning a painless one and hopefully even an enjoyable one. For every task that is arduous, it is equally as rewarding when milestones of understanding have been reached. As always, the skeleton informs the foundation of all anatomy.

How to draw a torso

Welcome to this drawing tutorial! Make sure to grab the free worksheets below and take time to practice. Drawing is a skill that requires hands-on practice so make sure you spend more time making art than consuming tutorials. There are two major steps to understanding the torso. The first step is made up of two boxes for the ribcage and hips. When practicing this stage I recommend that you pay attention to the tilts of the ribcage and hips and try to capture the natural flow of most poses. Use lots of references and try to simplify down two of these major forms. Notice that the box at the top is much taller while the bottom one is short. You can play around with these proportions to get a large variety of character designs but ribcage is almost always drawn taller than the hips. Practice the box stage until you are fully comfortable with it before moving forward, getting the simplified forms down will make the entire process much easier. If you want help with drawing boxes that have dimension, you can check out my Basic Forms tutorial here Opens in a new tab.

This allows us to focus on the different angles of the upper torso to the pelvis.

This area can be tricky but hopefully by the end of these lessons you will be on your way to drawing the torso or trunk of the body like a pro! Take the time to gain a basic understanding of the regions of the spine. Notice that the Thoracic bends towards the upper back and the Lumbar and Cervical areas bends toward the front of the body. This can be very helpful when drawing the torso in a way that looks natural and organic. Notice in the illustration that we will be drawing the spine as a long cylindrical tube.

If you are struggling with drawing the torso, I am willing to bet big on the fact that your torso drawings will improve as soon as you are done with this illustrated guide! This is because I also strangled with it, and below I provide exactly the steps I took to improve. To draw the human torso, understand the shape of the torso, and learn the major muscle groups, their origin and insertion points, then practice as much as possible from reference to reinforce what you learned. In this tutorial on drawing the torso then, we will do just that, we will first look at the overall shape of the torso, we will then look at the bones and muscles that comprise it, and finally, we will discuss best ways to practice learning to draw. The shape of the torso is always simplified in artistic instructions.

How to draw a torso

Don Corgi. We independently review everything we recommend. When you purchase through our links, we may earn a small commission. This doesn't affect our editorial independence. Drawing a torso is usually one of the first body parts beginner artists want to learn after being able to draw a portrait. It is an easier feature to draw, but it also complements a portrait or half-body drawing well.

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Step-by-step , the course will guide you to knowing how to draw, to knowing how to practice, to knowing how to draw anything. Notice on the image above, we only see the bottom portion of the serratus muscles, the upper portion is obscured by the muscles of the chest. One landmark that you can use is the navel or belly button. These boxes can be turned in opposite directions creating a twist in the body. However, in the female figure, the waistline is higher and the navel will be slightly lower in height from the waist. Obliques attach from each side of the abs and connecting to the back muscles. Recent Posts See All. Learning to draw can be frustrating and intimidating but with these worksheets, you will have a clear path forward and exercises to help you take things one step at a time! Anatomy Expand child menu Expand. We are focusing solely on muscles we absolutely need to know to draw the torso well. The last main muscle group for the front view is the serratus muscles. First, the rib cage and collarbone, which I group together as the chest bones. Not only is it quicker to draw this way, it also makes it much easier to draw the body in variety of perspectives. I tend to just draw the figure without foundation.

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The pecs are seemingly two broad slabs of muscle that connects from the sternum to the shoulder or deltoid. It is held in place by the scapula and many muscles. It has two sections both of which attach at an insertion point to the humerus bone, this insertion is covered by the muscles of the shoulder. You can make these shapes look how you want but I like to use a barrel shape for the chest and floating underwear for the pelvis. Welcome back fellow artists! For the hips, we draw a form that is reminiscent of a pair of underwear, drawing in the hips this way makes it much easier to draw in the legs once we get to draw the full figure. Another benefit of simplifying a complex shape, is that you can chose whatever building blocks you like that work for you. Honestly, this tutorial was a challenge, and I know that making it helped me as much as I hope that it helped you. He shares his knowledge in drawing and painting on this site. Torso muscles.