Animal drawing [CGMA, Shannon Beaumont – 2020, Group-Buy]

An 8-Week Course on Understanding and Illustrating Animals​

This course focuses on breaking down animal anatomy into its simplest forms and shapes.

Animal Drawing emphasizes developing an understanding of the anatomy of both wildlife and domestic animals. Students will learn to construct quadruped skeletons and render fur and reptilian skin. Additionally, there will be an exploration of form and perspective, along with an analysis of gestures and expressions. Learning to draw animals is a vital step in creating populated landscapes and building a foundation that enhances believability in creature designs.

Course Outline​

Week #1: Basics of Animal Structure
Introduction to structure: how animals are built | Understanding form | Gesture | Shape and bony landmarks in equine and bovine forms.

Week #2: Unguligrade Skeleton (Equine & Bovine), Continued
Introduction to the skeleton: movement and limitations of the joints | Balance and proportions | Learn to simplify the complex skeleton into basic shapes for better understanding of how the animal’s skeleton functions and moves.

Week #3: Unguligrade Construction Shapes & Muscles (Equine & Bovine)
Form and direction | Filling out structure and surface form with muscle and deep tissue masses.

Week #4: Digitigrade Skeleton (Canine & Feline)
Breaking down forms into simple shapes | Familiarization with skeletal landmarks and shapes of the animals covered this week | Study from photos and life if possible.

Week #5: Digitigrade Construction Shapes & Muscles (Canine & Feline)
Understanding the construction of basic shapes and muscle structures | Construct your animal drawings by assembling skeletal structures with muscle forms on top | Focus on the foundation of the animal through skeleton and construction drawings before adding muscles.

Week #6: Bony Fish, Sharks, & Reptiles
Construction shapes | Skeleton and muscle overviews | In-depth look at how aquatic animals function.

Week #7: Birds
Construction shapes | Skeleton and muscle overview | Wing feather groups | Beaks | Folding and unfolding of the wings.

Week #8: Prehistoric Life and Rendering
Bird-hipped | Lizard-hipped | Construction shapes | Muscle and skeleton overview | Rendering techniques for coloring and finalizing animal drawings.

You can find more details by following this link.