Chewing Pencils

I have a naked woman skipping across my desk.

It might be a naked man, but I’m really not that sure.

But whatever it is, it obeys my every command, and when necessary, will even bend over backwards to help me with my drawing.

Before you think I’ve turned into some twisted pervert, I’m talking about one of the constant companions in my studio - the artist’s mannequin.

Sometimes a project will come up which calls for characters to be depicted in poses that I just can’t seem to picture in my head. Photo’s don’t help much and even though I twist and contort my own body infront of the mirror, I still can’t seem to get it quite right.

Enter the mannequin.

My mannequin has been invaluable for those times when a pose seems far too hard. I don’t use it all the time, but when I have it’s been worth its weight in gold. I simply twist the arms and legs and body into the position/pose I’m looking for, place it on the desk infront of me, and draw away. The mannequin has realistic, proportional human dimensions, so sometimes I need to make allowances for the distortions in my cartoon figures, but shortening legs or lengthening arms is far easier when the basic pose is already established.

While mannequins are fairly easy to come by, there are a few things to keep in mind before buying one:

Sizes - mannequins come in a range of sizes. The smaller ones around around 25cm (12″) with the largest I’ve seen being around the size of a small child!

Quality - like most things, there is a wide variety of manufacturers of mannequins and thus a wide variety of quality. On the cheaper end you have plastic versions that seem to break really easily. Wooden ones tend to be a bit stronger, but you get what you pay for. I have a wooden version that’s about 25cm tall and cost me about AUD$25. There were far more expensive equivalents available, but this one has lasted me a couple of years now and does the job nicely.

Bendy - the only issue I have with my mannequin is that the more extreme poses tend to put too much pressure on the joints. A few poses I haven’t been able to do at all as I was scared the thing would snap. There are versions that have a ‘bendy’ torso rather than the simple ’swivel hip joint’ that might be more suitable to the cartoonist.

Male, Female or Unisex - whatever takes your fancy I guess!

Skeletons - probably more appropriate for somebody in a medical type profession, some mannequins are a scaled down version of the human skeleton.

Hands and Feet - the bane of most cartoonists is drawing hands. Feet can be hidden in shoes or left out entirely, but the hands are always painful. I’m not sure if you can still call them ‘mannequins’ but there are versions that are just a hand or just a foot. If drawing these body parts are a real problem for you, get one of these! They are a bit more expensive than the full body, but well worth it.

Animals - Some places stock animal mannequins. This could be worth exploring if you do a regular strip that features animals.

Mannequins are available at any good art store. If they don’t have any in stock, or they don’t have the specific type or size you’re after, it shouldn’t be a problem for them to order it in for you.

And if there are no art supply shops near you, do a google search for ‘artists mannequins’ and take your pick. To save you some time, when I did the search today, the top result was these guys.

If you’re really embarrassed by having a naked person on your desk, you can do one of two things. You can buy some doll clothes and dress your mannequin up (don’t laugh, it happens) or, to make everybody in the room feel equal, take your own clothes off and draw naked.

I’ll leave that decision to you…