Fashion Design Drawing

THE FASHION FIGURE VERSUS THE _______HUMAN FIGURE________

Even though the present-day trend is toward naturalism in fashion sketching, there is still a vast difference between the fashion figure and the human figure. The greatest difference is, as it always has been, in the height of the two figures. The fashion figure is always taller, more graceful and more seductive in line.

The variance in other ways may be summed up in a few words: the fashion figure is higher busted, broader and squarer shouldered, and narrower, very narrow, in the hips. The proportions vary from season to season to exploit more perfectly the current modes, but these are the general high points to remember.

The average human figure is seven and one-half heads tall, whereas a fashion figure may be from eight to ten heads tall, - in extreme mannequin types, as many as twelve heads. However, the height of the fashion figure should be governed by the length of the head and the width of the shoulders. This added height lends sophistication, grace and smartness to the figure - qualities that are envied by the majority of women and therefore enhance the appeal of an advertisement.

There should be a more angular appearance and a more abstract feeling to a fashion sketch than there is to a human figure, but at the same time the fashion figure, to meet modern popular demands, must be natural looking and suggestive of action.

This comparison will illustrate the contrasting proportions of the human and fashion figures. Both figures were started with the same size head as their unit of measuring.

Fashion Design Drawing - Fashion Design Figure 1.jpg

CONSTRUCTION OF THE ANIMATED FASHION FIGURE

Although the Animated fashion figure is the type most popular for newspaper advertising and general use, the fashion artist should be familiar with the proportions of both the Animated and the Mannequin Types. The following proportions are for an animated figure in a symmetrical pose, front view, to illustrate more clearly the correct locations of the parts of the body. Copy this figure exactly, including all the guide lines, and keep it in your permanent file.

The average person will find it easier to draw from left to right and from top of the paper down, but you may proceed in any manner you prefer. As the head is the most useful unit for measuring a figure, it will be used as a measuring unit for all other proportions. One speaks of a figure as being so many heads tall. The human figure is seven and one-half heads tall, whereas a fashion figure is from eight to ten heads tall. The Animated Type of fashion figure is about eight and three-quarters heads tall.

First, draw a vertical line lengthwise through the center of your drawing paper.

Construct an egg-shaped oval at the top of this line with the larger part of the oval at the top. This represents the head.