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This article was co-authored by Renée Plevy. Renée Plevy is an Internationally Acclaimed Portrait Artist from New York/Palm Beach who has painted The Grand Dames of Palm Beach and various celebrities and community leaders. With over 50 years of experience, Renée specializes in painting realistically in oil and capturing the soul of the person. She has studied under internationally renowned portrait artists John Howard Sanden, David Leffel, Robert Beverly Hale, Clyde Smith, and Leonid Gervits. Renée is featured in over 68 shows and galleries including a one-woman museum show at the Paterson Museum. She has garnered numerous awards including “Artist of the Year” from The Bloomfield Art League and First Prize from the Boca Raton Museum Artist’s Guild. Renée has even painted a portrait of celebrity, Vanilla Ice. She also teaches at the Boca Raton Museum Art School - formerly at SVA in Manhattan.
This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources.
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Drawing a human body is a challenging project, but here are some simple steps to get you started.
Steps
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Sketch the wire frame of the human body with these basic shapes and lines.[1] -
Sketch additional shapes as a guide to create the human figure.Advertisement
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Sketch the male figure by using the shapes as a guide. Also study about the human anatomy.[2]
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Draw the outline over the sketch.
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Erase and remove the sketch marks.
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Add the skin color
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Add shading color or tones.
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Sketch the wire frame of the human body with these basic shapes and lines.[3]
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Sketch additional shapes as a guide to create the human figure.[4]
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Sketch the female figure by using the shapes as a guide. Also study about the human anatomy.
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Draw the outline over the sketch.
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Erase and remove the sketch marks.
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Add the skin color
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Add shading color or tones.
- If you want to become better at drawing read about art.
- Do more sketching.
- Find someone who can teach you to observe things like an artist.
Expert Q&A
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QuestionDoes the chemical composition of the paints influence the secondary colors?
Renée PlevyRenée Plevy is an Internationally Acclaimed Portrait Artist from New York/Palm Beach who has painted The Grand Dames of Palm Beach and various celebrities and community leaders. With over 50 years of experience, Renée specializes in painting realistically in oil and capturing the soul of the person. She has studied under internationally renowned portrait artists John Howard Sanden, David Leffel, Robert Beverly Hale, Clyde Smith, and Leonid Gervits. Renée is featured in over 68 shows and galleries including a one-woman museum show at the Paterson Museum. She has garnered numerous awards including “Artist of the Year” from The Bloomfield Art League and First Prize from the Boca Raton Museum Artist’s Guild. Renée has even painted a portrait of celebrity, Vanilla Ice. She also teaches at the Boca Raton Museum Art School - formerly at SVA in Manhattan.
Portrait Artist & EducatorOil paints, acrylic paints, and watercolor paints have different chemical compositions. So the secondary colors that emerge will be different. For instance, if you mix cerulean blue instead of ultramarine blue with red and yellow, you will get a different color. -
QuestionHow should you store oil paints?Renée PlevyRenée Plevy is an Internationally Acclaimed Portrait Artist from New York/Palm Beach who has painted The Grand Dames of Palm Beach and various celebrities and community leaders. With over 50 years of experience, Renée specializes in painting realistically in oil and capturing the soul of the person. She has studied under internationally renowned portrait artists John Howard Sanden, David Leffel, Robert Beverly Hale, Clyde Smith, and Leonid Gervits. Renée is featured in over 68 shows and galleries including a one-woman museum show at the Paterson Museum. She has garnered numerous awards including “Artist of the Year” from The Bloomfield Art League and First Prize from the Boca Raton Museum Artist’s Guild. Renée has even painted a portrait of celebrity, Vanilla Ice. She also teaches at the Boca Raton Museum Art School - formerly at SVA in Manhattan.
Portrait Artist & EducatorClose the tubes and keep the caps clean. Store them away from heat. Or else the pigments and the binder will separate. A lot of medium, like linseed oil, will come out when you open the tubes. -
QuestionWhat does a young boy look like?
Infinity ArcticmajorCommunity AnswerThe chest appears less muscular and is smaller, as are the legs. Young children usually don't have sharp chins.
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Tips
Tips from our Readers 
- When drawing a female body, make their waist thinner than a male's.
Things You'll Need
- Paper
- Pencil
- Pencil sharpener
- Eraser gum
- Colored pencils, crayons, markers or watercolors
References
About This Article
If you want to draw a body, sketch out the wireframe of the human body, including a circular head and pelvis, an oval chest, and stick arms and legs. Use that frame as a guide to fill in more details, like the arms, legs, hands, neck, and feet. It may help to have a drawing of the human body nearby to use as a reference point. For tips on drawing a male vs a female body, keep reading!
Reader Success Stories
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"I liked how it said to use basic shapes because that's very easy for me to do. Plus, I didn't have to do really complicated things it, was all straight forward."..." more
