Project - The Shape Method

Lesson by

Michael Hampton

inThe Gesture Course

146

Course In Progress

Assignments 43

Downloads 6

Project - The Shape Method

Lesson by

Michael Hampton

in The Gesture Course

146

Course In Progress

Assignments 43

Downloads 6

Use the provided figure references to practice The Shape Method. We'll be using the same photo set as our previous assignment so you can compare your approach in these two methods.

Focus on:

Part-to-part drawing
Gesture of each part
Wrapping lines for perspective
Working from head to foot

Tips for Success

Be patient — this method might feel unfamiliar if you're used to a different approach.
Don’t be hard on yourself — it’s okay if it feels awkward at first.
Have fun with it — try exaggerating shapes or modifying forms to better connect with the method.

Hard Mode

Want to increase the difficulty? Modify the forms and exaggerate the figures into new and stylized body types!

Deadline - submit by May 2, 2025 for a chance to be in the critique video!

Gannon Beck

•

Here are a few more before the deadline. I feel like ideas about structure and gesture are synthesizing with this approach for me.

Anthony DeGennaro

•

Here are some gestures I worked on, once I got into a groove it started to feel better. some got a little big for the page. The male one seemed to get a bit too thick in the hip area. hope to hear your feedback!

Ben Whitfield

•

Here are my attempts of the first 7 poses. These were a struggle and I felt like I wasn't drawing with any flow. Much more practice is needed to feel more comfortable. I will add the other poses as a I complete them.

@lightsdesu

•

3rd attempt

@saschu

•

12h

Pedro Branco

•

16h

Here are my gestures!

Jacob Granillo

•

Well done Pedro, I really enjoy how you are experimenting with character design! And for the gestures what I recommend is to not copy the contour of the figure of your reference. Gesture is the idea of the figure, not the contour of the figure. In Michael's examples he draws the whole torso as one simplified shape and not drawing the outline of the body. Especially if you want to draw from memory or imagination and with character design. It's better to understand the figure than to copy it

Pedro Branco

•

16h

All 28, plus 5 more where I changed the form of the bodies. I intended to change the body shape of all 28 but it wasn't very clear in my head if I was doing it right especially when I compared to the examples in the first video.

@stefyart

•

Here are my assignments. I found more difficult the shape method than the previous one, I feel that I am doing something wrong in the process, because the temptation to follow the contour of the figure haunted me while I was drawing, so I am not very confident that the result is good.

Sarah Rivera

•

I don't know why shapes feel so awkward to me. It feels so stiff compared to the gestures and they aren't flowing as well as I'd like them to.

Dave Sakamoto

•

Finished. Phew!

Lone Varg

•

Ari a

•

I dont even know what I'm doing atp😅

@lightsdesu

•

2nd attempts

@lightsdesu

•

My attempts

Maria Bygrove

•

Scott

•

My efforts this morning.

Jyayasi (*Jay-o-she*)

•

Had a lot of fun with these! I tried modifying the shapes into stylized ones and exaggerating the pose as well. It was hard to draw stylized forms in perspective and maintaining the relative proportions. However, I encountered a problem in the stylized characters in 9 and 11. These poses look heavily foreshortened and I didn't intend so. It seems to me that the proportions of my characters are responsible for this illusion. Or am I doing something wrong? As I do not intend to make this kind of foreshortening, is there a way to avoid this kind of distortion with the same stylization choices?

Gannon Beck

•

Wow! Great job on these. #11 is especially great.

@purpleart

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Next 3. Would like them to flow more and I feel I'm missing the form intersections. Will need to rewatch the previous videos before I do more.

Nathan CIPIERE

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Hey Michael, here is mine. That's the first time Im sending an assignement, thank you so much for those precious contents. I'm a big fan of your pedagogy.

Scott

•

Very expressive lines

Scott

•

Very enjoyable.

Double O

•

Still trying to get more confident with this, but I'll admit, had an easier time with the shape method. Tried to mess around with proportions on the second set.

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About instructor

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Michael Hampton

Educator, painter, writer, and art historian. Author of Figure Drawing: Design and Invention.