28 replies to this topic

[Boleslaw I]

My previous drawings are really a disaster, since there are too many anachronistic problems. I have been much interested in Tang dynasty and have therefore researched the armours of the time. Here are some sketches that I have tried to do with more care than ever.
(Please frankly criticise if you find some of them are inaccurate.)


Tang Imperial Guard (Dedicated to Yun)



(I like this one best, it is from a figurine in the National Museum in Beijing)


(I am not sure if this is of Tang army, but the original figurine is found in Mingoi, Turkestan, an area under Tang influence. I thus decide to draw it at once.


This kind of armour is what I come up with very frequently, I also sketch some of the helmets as I saw lokapala. However, I have indeed crossed out some since they may be unreal.


This one is based upon a large figurine

Edited by Boleslaw I, 30 November 2008 - 11:01 PM.

[kaiselin]

Boleslaw I, Very nice drawings, you are doing a great job. I can not comment on the authenticity of the armor.
There is only one thing that I can see that needs improved on. All proportions are excellent except your legs are all too short. The waist is not the mid point in the body, but the groin.

Other then that your work is very nice.

Edited by kaiselin, 24 November 2008 - 10:25 PM.

[William O'Chee]

Asians have shorter femurs, Kaiselin.

I am unsure about the short necks though.

Keep up the good work, though. I wish I had half your artistic talent.

[Boleslaw I]

Asians have shorter femurs, Kaiselin.

I am unsure about the short necks though.

Keep up the good work, though. I wish I had half your artistic talent.

Hi William and Kaiselin!
I did worry very much about ratio, I did recognise what William said (He did say it before)
However, whenever you draw, it is kind of crazy enough to re-adjust all proportions of the armour (which the original comes from figurines) to the body, the result is somewhat awkward.
William, you are talking about short neck, can you enlight me on this? I am actually studying human proportion, yet I guess the Greek golden ratio cannot apply to Chinese
Kaiselin, you are speaking of the waist, could you tell me more about this? I still have 2 pictures that need to update and 8 that will be eliminated (due to its unreal elements from lokapala, usually, what I post here is the final draft, before that, I drew quite many variations to recheck the historical accuracy.)

BTW, is the waist always the mid-point of the body, it seems that mine is not (Weird)?

Edited by Boleslaw I, 25 November 2008 - 09:44 AM.

[General_Zhaoyun]

Wow..you certainly done a good job in the armour. I have to say I'm impressed!

[William O'Chee]

I think that your ratio of upper body to leg length is just right for Chinese, since they tend to have a slightly shorter femur length relative to the length of the spine. That is why Chinese often seem short. Sitting on chairs it is not so apparent.

I just think the necks in the drawings seem a fraction too short. I know there is no hard and fast rule about this for any given race, but I would suggest the ones in your drawings could be a smidgeon longer.

[Yun]

Thank you for dedicating the first picture to me, Boleslaw. I must say that since your illustrations of armor are based closely on actual murals and statues from the Tang period, their accuracy cannot be faulted without questioning the reliability of the originals themselves!

Good work, do keep it up.

[MattW]

I struggle with stick men, so i admire anyone who can draw like that. They are nice drawings!

[kaiselin]

Yes, I agree they are very nice drawings. I encourage you to continue with your drawing.

In reply to the short femurs of most Asians, that may be. I was unaware of that fact.

The arms are in proportion with the chest torso but not the legs.
Usually arms are also in proportion to the legs. It is the extra long arms that clued me into the proportion being slightly off. I have never noticed in looking at Asians in pictures or statues that the femur appeared as short as it does, or their arms so long, as in in your drawings. This is why I mentioned that, not to criticize, but to give you a helping hint.

The elbow should bend right at the waist. The longest finger should hit mid thigh. There are always exceptions to the rules. For instance many people from Normandy in northern France have large barrel chests and short arms. Their elbows tend to be slightly above the natural waist. The tips of their fingers are above the mid way point on the thigh.

A six foot tall person should have an arm span of six feet. Their in-stem( from floor up to crotch) will be just slightly less then half their height. I have long legs and a short waist, my elbows come just below my natural waist, my finger tips reach mid thigh and my inseam is 36 inches, half of my height.

Someone with a long body and short legs is apt to have short arms too.

A couple of other comments.
Barbie dolls and fashion artwork depicts people and more so women with disproportionately long legs.


And as far as taking the picture off of a known sculpture, unless you trace a picture of it, there can be many things to make your drawings proportions incorrect.
Proportion is not always an easy thing to achieve and the slightest error at the top can exaggerate the error at the bottom. It takes practice practice practice just like everything else.

And Matt, I believe anyone can draw if they take the time to observe and learn the rules and techniques.

[Boleslaw I]

Yes, I agree they are very nice drawings. I encourage you to continue with your drawing.

In reply to the short femurs of most Asians, that may be. I was unaware of that fact.

The arms are in proportion with the chest torso but not the legs.
Usually arms are also in proportion to the legs. It is the extra long arms that clued me into the proportion being slightly off. I have never noticed in looking at Asians in pictures or statues that the femur appeared as short as it does, or their arms so long, as in in your drawings. This is why I mentioned that, not to criticize, but to give you a helping hint.

The elbow should bend right at the waist. The longest finger should hit mid thigh. There are always exceptions to the rules. For instance many people from Normandy in northern France have large barrel chests and short arms. Their elbows tend to be slightly above the natural waist. The tips of their fingers are above the mid way point on the thigh.

A six foot tall person should have an arm span of six feet. Their in-stem( from floor up to crotch) will be just slightly less then half their height. I have long legs and a short waist, my elbows come just below my natural waist, my finger tips reach mid thigh and my inseam is 36 inches, half of my height.

Someone with a long body and short legs is apt to have short arms too.

A couple of other comments.
Barbie dolls and fashion artwork depicts people and more so women with disproportionately long legs.


And as far as taking the picture off of a known sculpture, unless you trace a picture of it, there can be many things to make your drawings proportions incorrect.
Proportion is not always an easy thing to achieve and the slightest error at the top can exaggerate the error at the bottom. It takes practice practice practice just like everything else.

And Matt, I believe anyone can draw if they take the time to observe and learn the rules and techniques.

Thank you very much, I will take notice on all these advices to be more cautious. I have downloaded a lot of pictures of Chinese people to observe carefully for the ratio. At the end of this thread, I will post or link to pictures of tomb figurines or murals which I had used to draw the armours. After Tang, perhaps I will roll my pencil to The Northern Southern Dynasties, it is a promising period.
But Kaiselin, do you think modern Chinese are different from their ancestors? Perhaps due to nutrition?

[Boleslaw I]

I have just finished a Tang archer, in light cloth though.

[MattW]

And Matt, I believe anyone can draw if they take the time to observe and learn the rules and techniques.

My art teacher said i was devoid of even basic artistic talent! Nice archer Boleslaw. As an aside, have you done any drawing from the modern era of chinese history?

[ShingenT]

very nice,

you should get your own deviantart page.

[Boleslaw I]

very nice,

you should get your own deviantart page.

Thank you all!

My art teacher said i was devoid of even basic artistic talent! Nice archer Boleslaw. As an aside, have you done any drawing from the modern era of chinese history?

Oh no, I am actually more interesting in Classical periods of China, particularly in Tang, and then Han, Age of Fragmentation and finally Song dynasty.

If you ask, I will say so far, I love the second drawings most, and then the first. They just consume a considerable amount of time to finish.

Edited by Boleslaw I, 02 December 2008 - 09:20 PM.

[Terence1]

Your drawing are very nice! Just one question, is the archer wearing a cap or is that his hair?
I am asking this because it looks like a ming dynasty offical cap.

Oh an good luck if you are going to draw the mountian pattern armour next. Keep up the good work.