Образ человека

by Gottfried Bammes, Готтфрид Баммес

This profusely illustrated book by a master of the subject offers a complete course in transforming the study of anatomy into art, with emphasis on the skills needed to draw the human body "from the inside." Each stage of the course progresses logically through the body's main areas — trunk, limbs, head, and features, with the entire body eventually viewed as a complete entity.
Accompanying a text on techniques that even novices can master are nearly 200 illustrations in color and black-and-white. These include works by painters, graphic artists, sculptors, art teachers, and students. All demonstrate how to achieve accurate and expressive forms.
Invaluable to beginning and advanced students of life drawing, the text also includes practical exercises that will help develop visual imagination.

Genres: Art, Drawing, Nonfiction

507 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1986

Reviews

[Neil Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

a classic textbook for a course of study in figure drawing. written in German, the approach is thoroughly technical and based on the precent - form fits function (hence the title: The Design of the Body). packed with detailed information.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only anatomy book you'll need! Very dense and worth every cent.
Not everyone has the time for classes or the opportunity to work with nude models. This book offers you to brush up, refine, or learn on your own time and at your own pace.

[Troy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whoa!
Study this book!!!
Copy the drawings! Learn!

[Duc Ngo · Rating 2 out of 5]

The content of the information is amazing, I'm sure. Unfortunately, the translation into English is completely incomprehensible.

I honestly could not understand almost the entirety of this book, and so unfortunately, I cannot give it a good rating.
The illustrations however, are fairly useful for studying as if one were to look at a peer's notes. As someone mentioned in the softcover version of this book, they were done by students.

[Qing Wang · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recommended by my sculpture teacher as the only reference book a sculptor ever needs. It's very dense. Alongside the scientific knowledge of anatomy, there are intriguing reflections and philosophical ideas on the topic about the relationship between outside and inside, i.e., human appearance and the soul, how the understanding of anatomy will eventually free artists in their endeavor to create convincing human forms with emotions and feelings.

[Our Unnamed Protagonist · Rating 5 out of 5]

The greatest artistic anatomy book of all times. The gold standard. We used this when I was studying, I have pictures of the plates around when I'm drawing the figure, and I recommend anybody who wants to learn on their own use this guide. Treat it not like a textbook, but a life-long resource. The only part that could have used more work was the chapter on faces, but that would require its own book. As a supplement, I would recommend Hampton's Figure Drawing: Design and Invention. Bammes' way of doing things is more appropriate to me and my way of thinking, he starts from the most general shapes and makes them more specific, whereas Hampton uses his knowledge of anatomy all at once. Both are important, make them your tools, make them your friends!

From what little I could learn, Bammes lived and worked in East Germany. The Soviet Union, whatever one might be able to say (I don't care at all for politics), preserved the techniques of the old masters, there were modifications to be sure, and those are reflected in this book.

I should warn the reader of this review that it might not be totally impartial, during my boyhood I trained as a draftsman, and this was our Bible (quite literally, we employed the whole of Bammes' corpus). This book went from the bludgeon my teacher beat me over with, to a useful tool I employed, to an anchor forever bound to the golden days of my youth.

Thank you, Professor Bammes!

[Bouthaïna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was suggested to me (or rather us) by an artistisic anatomy professor (and other art professors as well), so I got it

At first it felt really complicated and hard to follow, and it probably still is, considering the dry writing

However, I decided to use it as a sketching/general practice reference and I find it pretty useful for that purpose

[kaitlyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of my new favorites :] my prof called this his bible

[Jonathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recomending this book even if you don't speak german, there seems to be an english version now - but I haven't read that.

Just copy the drawings and look and think and everything is good! Master draughtsman in no time!