All content copyright John Watkiss 2007.
No portion of this book may be reproduced or distributed
without express permission of the author, except for review or journalistic purposes.
Publication design by Ryan Graff.
fly in the room
a n at o m y
j o h n wat k i s s
fly in the room anatomy
Introduction
In my experience of teaching and writing, it is easy to complicate and hard to
simplify things.
In this book we will take a fly in the rooms view of the human figure. The
skeletal and anatomical (muscular) have been kept simplified, because the angles
the fly will present us will gradually become more pragmatic, and consequently,
more complex. This fly has a playful sense of composition and is disposed to loving
the asymmetrical view of the model. You will notice that, at any given view, the
figure is not caught at the center of the page. In fact, as the viewing goes on we
are inclined to feel that this fly is something of a budding photographer.
Ok, so far Im jokingbut in all honesty, thats the story of my development
into the film and television industry. Starting with the human figure at the age of
eleven (study of anatomy), creating figure groupings together from imagination,
I began to evolve a cinematic sense of my complete knowledge of the figure from
every viewpoint. I have become the fly in the room of life, and it is great fun.
Please refer to my book, Progressive Anatomy, for further clarifications on bone
structure, and also my On Anatomy book for anatomical detail. In fact, these
books are the preparation for this cinematic finale, from the fine artist who wants
to create dynamic figure compositions to the development artist working in film.
This book is a hopeful lead-in to the dancer who has learned their physical
exercise and is now ready to express a choreographic celebration.
There will be no attempt to name the bones or the muscles in this book. The
aesthetics of the construction is all that needs to be remembered (please refer to
my other books for this).
I recall what got me interested in anatomy was the beautiful surface shapes
that presented themselves and consequently, the exquisite shapes of the muscles.
I learned the names much later!
Love of the subject comes first, diligent research follows!
j o hn watkiss
fly in the room anatomy
Important Point
The journey begins: In order to stimulate your imagination toward a complete
understanding of the human form, go through each plate in sequence and
memorize it. Close the book and draw by recall, this is how I learned my craft.
In the long term, you will find that this is the easier way. No one will ever accuse
you of being a copyist! Good luck!
j o hn watkiss
fly in the room anatomy
j o hn watkiss
10
fly in the room anatomy
11
j o hn watkiss
12
fly in the room anatomy
13
j o hn watkiss
14
fly in the room anatomy
15
j o hn watkiss
16
fly in the room anatomy
17
j o hn watkiss
18
fly in the room anatomy
19
j o hn watkiss
20
fly in the room anatomy
21
j o hn watkiss
22
fly in the room anatomy
23
j o hn watkiss
24
fly in the room anatomy
25
j o hn watkiss
26
fly in the room anatomy
27
j o hn watkiss
28
fly in the room anatomy
29
j o hn watkiss
30
fly in the room anatomy
31
j o hn watkiss
32
fly in the room anatomy
33
j o hn watkiss
34
fly in the room anatomy
35
j o hn watkiss
36
fly in the room anatomy
Now that weve seen the figure from all around, its time for some choreography!
Remember, try to memorize each pose!
Good luck!
37
j o hn watkiss
38
fly in the room anatomy
39
j o hn watkiss
40
fly in the room anatomy
41
j o hn watkiss
42
fly in the room anatomy
43
j o hn watkiss
44
fly in the room anatomy
45
j o hn watkiss
46
fly in the room anatomy
47
j o hn watkiss
48
fly in the room anatomy
49
j o hn watkiss
50
fly in the room anatomy
51
j o hn watkiss
52
fly in the room anatomy
53
j o hn watkiss
54
fly in the room anatomy
55
j o hn watkiss
56
fly in the room anatomy
57
j o hn watkiss
58
fly in the room anatomy
59
j o hn watkiss
60
fly in the room anatomy
61
j o hn watkiss
62
fly in the room anatomy
63
j o hn watkiss
64
fly in the room anatomy
65
j o hn watkiss
66
fly in the room anatomy
67
j o hn watkiss
68
fly in the room anatomy
69
j o hn watkiss
70
fly in the room anatomy
Conclusion
The following thumbnails show the edited sequence of the fly in the room
anatomy. I have done this to emphasize the silhouette value of realizing a strong
idea of how the figure impacts the frame. I want you to consider how the gestured
lines of action impact the frame in an asymmetric way. In other words, the frame
is never evenly divided; everything is off-center. This is the full realization of the
value of composition. Without a sense of this, the artist will never realize that
vision transcends technique.
71
j o hn watkiss
72
fly in the room anatomy
73
j o hn watkiss
Biography
John Watkiss is an accomplished illustrator with an extensive artistic career that
has taken him from the field of advertising to the world of film and graphic novels.
Watkiss has worked for numerous world-famous companies including Saatchi &
Saatchi, Ridley Scott Associates, Francis Ford Coppola, Dreamworks, Twentieth
Century Fox and Disney on such projects as Tarzan, Atlantis, The Emperors New
Groove and Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. Recently, Watkiss has done a
number of projects with DC/Vertigo, including Sandman, Trigger and Deadman.
Other Books by John Watkiss
Available at www. johnwatkiss.blogspot.com
John Watkiss on Anatomy
Progressive Anatomy
Garment Construction: The Jacket and Pants
74
