Download These Exercises and Learn How to Draw the Female Body

7 drawing exercises by Violeta Hernández for practicing the female figure

The best way to learn to draw and improve your technique is to practice with different exercises. Violeta Hernández (@soyvioleta) is an illustrator and designer that frequently draws inspiration from the feminine and the organic, fascinated by the perfection of nature. Here she'll share a series of exercises that will help you improve your technique when drawing the female anatomy.

One of the most complicated parts of illustration is, no doubt, learning how to draw the human body. Violeta Hernández found the solution after endless hours of practice; inspired by Gustav Klimt's anatomical drawings and adding Toulouse-Lautrec's essence with dynamic strokes, eroticism and romanticism.

Knowing the human anatomy in depth allows her to play with its shapes and hide details of the female figure, playing with the poses and the rest of the elements in the drawing so that elements of the figure get lost where appropriate. Her best advice: "Learn the basics of anatomy in order to know how it works and experiment with poses. Review old anatomical illustrations, practice using photographs, even yourself in front of the mirror; it is important that you work with a real body in mind".

In this download, you will find some sketches of a human female skeleton based on photographic references that will help you understand the measurements, the defining lines and the perspective. Try copying them until you feel comfortable with what you are doing. There are also some exercises to learn how to synthesize shapes and stylize characters, with special focus on certain specific parts of the body such as hands and feet.

Discover the course 'Botanic Animal House: Watercolour, Ink and Graphite', an excellent option to get to know all the secrets on how to use traditional drawing techniques, such as watercolor, ink or graphite, and create your own illustrated botanical animal house.

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