Yzabel / September 29, 2013

Art Models 7: Dynamic Figures for the Visual Arts by Maureen Johnson

My rating: [rating=5]

Summary:

Artists in search of figures in intense action—flying through the air, punching, kicking, and crouching—will find more than 100 poses of male and female models in 28 categories of dynamic movement in this DVD-ROM that is the latest addition to the Art Models series. With over 2,000 high-resolution images on the disc, artists have the ability to study these motions at length, opening up a world of high-intensity movement that can be incorporated into their artwork without taking up space on their computer hard drives or working with the cost and time constraints of hiring models. The ability for multiple-angle viewing and drawing at the artist’s pace becomes as easy as putting in the disc—which is both Mac and PC compatible and doesn’t require any special programs—and opening any photo. Poses have been carefully chosen to illustrate important effects, such as foreshortening and perspective changes. For artists who work in fine detail, close-ups and dramatic perspectives have been added for many positions and can be found in resolutions up to 20 megapixels. A section of photos depicting frozen actions, including jumping, falling, or swinging a sword, offers artists a series of expertly photographed views that would be very challenging to achieve with a studio model. Art Models 7 also presents a number of the series’ trademark stationary poses photographed in 24-point rotation and shot in the round.

Review:

(I got an e-copy from NetGalley last year, in exchange for an honest review.)

I didn’t review this one as soon as I got an ebook copy, due to various reasons (first and foremost, my lack of an attention span, I suppose), and what a shame this is. The poses it contains are definitely interesting and inspiring, and any artist will likely get at least a few ideas just by looking at them, dynamic and varied as they are. Besides, the models aren’t all cut from the same mold, and feature people who aren’t necessarily of the very lean and/or very muscular kind, which is great in terms of variation, and allows to get a better feeling of the human anatomy no matter height or weight.

Since what I got was a review copy, I only had the PDF, not the CD-Rom. What I could see in it already inspired me, but I think the book really does wonder when you have the whole package: from what I understand, the pictures on the CD can be viewed from different angles, thus making the poses even more interesting to work with.

This is definitely a book/CD I’ll buy for myself.