Robust, 1998, by Fred Hatt
The front of the body has most of the major focal points, so we tend to think of the back as secondary and less interesting. We tend to want to face others, so the back of the body is unseen, like the far side of the moon. Here’s a selection of my drawings of nude backs from over the years, making the case for the beauty and power of the human back.
Compact, 2004, by Fred Hatt
Triangular, 2008, by Fred Hatt
Violon d'Ingres, 1997, by Fred Hatt
Look at the variety in these backs. They convey personality even without a face or an action pose. The anatomy of the back is a complex structure of curved and triangular bones and muscles, but it’s hidden underneath the skin, so the landmarks can be elusive.
Most of these more finished drawings have been done at the three-hour long pose session at Spring Studio. I’ve been the monitor (supervisor) at one of these weekly sessions for at least thirteen years. There are always artists that want to draw portraits at these sessions, so nearly all the poses are more or less frontal. The studio is set up with drawing stations on three sides of the stand, so sometimes it’s possible to get a back view by going all the way to the side. The light is usually coming from in front of the model, so the back is often in shadow, illuminated by light reflecting back from the colored fabric backdrops, as in these examples:
Prism, 1998, by Fred Hatt
La Reina, 2009, by Fred Hatt
The back of the body can convey the mood, attitude, and style of a person:
Afar, 2000, by Fred Hatt
Fan, 2004, by Fred Hatt
Burlyman, 2004, by Fred Hatt
As the great majority of the body’s nerves branch out from the spinal cord, the energy impulses that travel through the body are close to the surface of the back. I sometimes draw to help me visualize the energy I can sense in someone’s body:
Energy Fields, 2002, by Fred Hatt
Backlines, 2001, by Fred Hatt
Back with Projections, 2006, by Fred Hatt
The back is also the center of movement in the body. Mana Hashimoto, the blind dancer I’ve worked with on several performance projects, leads classes in “Dance Without Sight”. When I took the class, Mana showed us how to follow another person’s movement by lightly touching them. A hand on the middle of the back can detect every major movement of the body, including those of the extremities. There is no other place to put the hand that works as well.
Crawling, 2002, by Fred Hatt
Leaning Back, 2009, by Fred Hatt
Blades and Curves, 2007, by Fred Hatt
Ankle Grasp, 2003, by Fred Hatt
Five more pictures fill out the post – explorations of the beautiful possibilities of the second side of the body:
Chair Back, 2001, by Fred Hatt
Curvaceous, 2004, by Fred Hatt
Dorsal Contours, 2009, by Fred Hatt
Press, 2009, by Fred Hatt
Squat, 2009, by Fred Hatt
These drawings are all aquarelle crayon on paper, 50 cm x 70 cm or 18″ x 24″ or close to those sizes. Most of them were made during life drawing sessions at Spring Studio, Project of Living Artists, or Figureworks Gallery.
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12 Comments
Nice set & explanations, Fred. I’m heading to a drawing session tonight & I’ll definitely be paying more attention to backs.
Thanks, Jim. Let me know when you post some new back drawings on your Flickr page.
Great topic! Your awesome drawings prove your point about the back being an interesting subject. As an art model, this is reassuring. When the model stand is in the center of the room with artists surrounding 360 degrees, someone will get a back view.
I love the dramatic lighting in Robust and Violon d’Ingres. I sometimes hear art professors telling their students to push the range of values more. I think these drawings illustrate why.
It is interesting to compare Prism with the others because it was done 12 years ago and looks like a very different style. Less stylized actually.
I hope Leaning Back was a short pose. I wouldn’t want to do that for 20 minutes.
I’m not crazy about the pose in Chair Back. There’s only so much a model can do with a chair.
“Jim. Let me know when you post some new back drawings on your Flickr page.” Just done did post one from tonight’s session, Fred. My disclaimer: Remember I sketch/paint for pleasure, not for profit not posterity (ifen posterity want’s em, let em paint their own!) hence no apologies for my errors or omissions.
Jim, for pleasure is one of the best reasons to make art. You don’t need a disclaimer. Your work is very expressive. I really like the ones that go more abstract.
Andrew, “Leaning Back” was a ten-minute pose. I wouldn’t even want to hold that pose that long!
Comparing the older drawings to the newer ones, I notice that the long pose drawings have gotten looser and the quick pose drawings have gotten more confident.
If you ever make a trip to NYC, Andrew, I’ll make sure you have work while you’re here!
Fred, I always learn so much from your posts. This was very interesting: ” A hand on the middle of the back can detect every major movement of the body, including those of the extremities.” I really like the idea of looking at one body part done over a period of years with different models. Gives you quite a range, as you’ve shown. One other aspect of the body that really merits study is skin color, and this is illustrated in a new installation at the NGA in DC by Byron Kim. He’s painted the skin color of hundreds of people, each on individual panels (over 400 so far). http://www.nga.gov/fcgi-bin/tinfo_f?object=142289
That’s interesting, Lori, to separate skin color from the image of the body. It makes it a very abstract quality.
I did a post about skin color last summer. But it is a topic that will need to be revisited.
Bravo Fred! Wonderful homage to the human back. It is a truly expressive part of the body. I like to regard the back as personifying the opposing human qualities of vulnerability and strength. Well, both of those things come to mind whenever I look at a back. But when I model, I actually feel like I’m projecting more subservience when I’m displaying my back.
“Squat” is magnificent, Fred. And very intimate. Also, I’d like to echo Andrew on “Leaning Back”. I’ve done that pose (short, of course), and it is a bitch!
Fantastic gallery of images, and a fascinating post.
Claudia
Claudia, perhaps you feel more subservience when displaying your back because you’re being looked at but can’t look back? Sometimes facing the wall can feel like a kid sent to stand in the corner. But I usually see the back as strong. The forms of the back muscles, shoulderblades, spine and sacrum, are powerful, and a person’s vital energy is often particularly palpable on the back, as any masseur can tell you.
Great drawings, very loose and free. I also often like to draw the back. I used to love Picasso’s famous Blue Period nude from behind, and Bill Brandt’s photographs. At my life drawing class, however, although you can access the back, the poses are only for a few minutes so I find it hard to get anything but quick sketchy stuff done. I’d kill for 3 hours!
Adam, perhaps there are other life drawing groups in your area that offer a longer pose. If you are in the U.S. or Canada, check the listing of figure drawing groups and classes assembled by model Andrew Cahner, author of The Art Model’s Handbook and sometimes a commenter on this blog. (Click the link.) Or you may need to hire or otherwise find your own model. Quick sketches are great practice, as you need to work efficiently even if the pose is longer.
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