Animals, Pt. 1

Why do we draw animals and animal characters?  Perhaps it is to explore our humanity more.  We are often assigning animalistic qualities and names to human traits - that guy is "an animal", "fast as a cheetah", "stop monkeying around", "slow as a sloth", "memory of an elephant", "mongoose like reflexes" . . .  Perhaps it is to understand and enjoy our world more.  As artists we are always trying to capture and render glimpses of our world in a way that will speak to others.

There are many, many types of animals.  Quadrupeds, bipeds, furry beasts, winged creatures - with and without feathers, insects, sea creatures.  They all have one thing in common . . .  SHAPES!

When drawing animals, as with anything that we can observe, the key is breaking them down into and understanding their basic shape structures.  We must see through them, just as we would a human model in life drawing, to get to the very root of their form.

Anatomy! - would you ever consider a study of the human form complete without a study of anatomy?  Why would a study of an animal subject be any different?  Especially if you are designing a particular animal character, a study of it's anatomy is essential.

Learn to draw them realistically first! Artist David Colman puts it perfectly in his book "The Art of Animal Character Design" :

When capturing and studying animals, it is fascinating to discover their unique characters, especially in mammals.  Perhaps this is why we love to use them as characters so much - they offer unique insights and windows into ourselves.  Observe your animal subject and really strive to capture not just the shape and form of that creature, but also its unique character.

Caricature -  can you really caricature an animal!?  Of course!  What is a caricature if not and exaggeration of a subjects shapes and character?

Study from life. Study from reference.  Learn from the greats.

disclaimer: none of these images are mine.  they were borrowed from the internet or from books many images taken from these guys, via the internet: http://www.joeweatherly.net/drawings_gallery.html,  http://www.davidsdoodles.com/, others were taken from national geographic and random google searches.