Constructive Anatomy: Includes Nearly 500 Illustrations (Dover Anatomy for Artists) Paperback – June 1, 1973

In fact, I can safely say that this really is the most important book on artistic anatomy one can learn from. Many seem put off at first glance (I know I was) and say one of or all of the following...1 - "the drawings look sketchy sometimes"2 - "the anatomy seems exaggerated"3 - "the look might "cramp" your style"4 - "will copying the drawings really teach me anatomy?"Well, after having gone through the book once, reading how others go through it, working on form & exercises, and since I'm going through it again, I'll address these points.----------1: The "sketchiness" isn't there for the sake of being rough. Those lines & curves are there to show the rhythm and flow of how this part leads into that part. Keep in mind that not every drawing in the book is like this.2: The anatomy isn't really exaggerated. Consider that Bridgman's approach is on how muscles wedge into one another. If you study form, can analyze it, and can combine verious forms with overlapping, and then look at the drawings, things will click. The forms of various muscles stand out to show how the wedging works and sometimes the muscles happen to look flexed, that's all.3: This was an odd comment I read at [...], and there's no way that going through this will "cramp your style." If this is the first anatomy book you're considering, and if you've never gone through a drawing book at all, then you don't have a style. Don't worry about finding your style if you're just starting out - take the time to learn foundational principles & techniques, and make that your goal.4: I imagine that alot of people would think of copying like this: "Draw this line, put that curve right here, draw the line next to it, now move the pencil over here and draw this curve, repeat." Don't do that. It wasn't until I had a better grasp on form & the "classical approach" when things began to click. Once you learn the fundamentals of rhythm & gesture, observing angles, form, and "sculpting in the paper," use that understanding to analyze not only subjects for life drawing, but also drawings. As Glenn Vilppu says, "Don't copy the model, analyze it."---With that said, this book will show you anatomy as a set of forms, how they look from different views & actions, and, overall, how everything fits together. It's the perfect book to pull out once you can draw those geometric skeletons. Take your time and understand the text as Bridgman will explain what you're looking at. Analyzing the drawings is one thing, but the text does mention a lot of aspects on how the anatomy works.There is one flaw in the book, and that is the layout. I found myself having to flip between a few pages to look at the right drawing with the appropriately labeled parts so I could flip back to the text and better understand the stuff. This got a little frustrating but if you're patient, you can pick up alot of things from this. Like I said, take your time.

First off. The retailer got me the book in three days. I didnt pay additional to have it expedited, so that was a plus. As far as the material goes. Buy this book. There is a reason that Bridgman is know and recomended by so many professional and aspiring artist. I hadnt had this book a month and already improved my anatomy line work considerable. The sketches are very much in the Frank Frazetta style. Not a whole lot of dialogue instruction but multiple angles of each part of the body and for a visual learner like myself. Extremely insightful. I read where a lot of people note that you already have to have a clear understanding of anatomy. Well i have purchased quite a few books that go in long, long anatomy detail and i am not a professional artist by any means. This series of books along with Loomis and Hampton seem to be the way to go if you want to really get a grasp. Just my opinion. I am very glad i purchased this book. I would use this seller again, no question.

I use this all of the time when I am in class and to carry around to study. It is a smaller-sized book, so it fits easily into my bag. It is concise and well-written, making it easy to connect the writing to the many illustrations. It is a great book for any artist interested in anatomy to have.

I am an intermediate concept artist that bought this book because of my interest in character design and realistic human anatomy. I bought this book in the hopes of having an on hand and physical reference for anatomy whenever I need it and it does that very well. I highly recommend it if you need something like that.However, I do have one major complaint about the content of the book that I am fully aware is more of a consequence of when it was made rather than an intentional omission. But the book lacks a lot of information about women and people of other races who aren’t white. It’s very obvious that the person or kind of person that is used for reference are all only white men, which makes it difficult if you want to study anatomical differences in other kinds of people. And I personally believed that this wasn’t an unreasonable expectation to make as I was under the impression that this was a reference book for human anatomy in general and not just white men in specific.But aside from that complaint, it does a very fine job in what it’s supposed to be, and I highly recommend it to any artist that needs to have that accessible reference for anatomy anywhere they go.

I am very, very pleased with this purchase. The content is sublime; it is exactly what I was looking for in an anatomy book. I came to Bridgman's books because a comic book artist from DC Comics recommended one of Bridgman's works in a video I watched. I was debating between getting his "Complete Guide to Drawing From Life" and this book. Ultimately, from looking at examples from this book on Google Images, I decided to get this one. Suffice it to say, I am blown away. The drawings are amazing, perfectly quality and fabulously suited to my needs. Now, please be aware if you are reading this that I am a Fine Arts student and that I have been drawing for 10-15 years already and that in recent years I've gotten considerably better at drawing the human figure. This book, then, is exactly what I need to be able to draw accurately, with correct muscle placement and shape, and to be able to use the anatomy tools in this book in combination with pose references I have found online. So if you are a beginner, I would not recommend this book. The images are very advanced and the labeling uses the scientific/official names for the bones and muscles involved.Overall, I am extremely pleased! This is an excellent find and at a wonderful price! :)

a good reference book