>Photo 5 shows the position of the "Tragus on either side of the head" (this is the point above the ear lobe). If you are attending a portrait sculpture class you will discover that many measurements are taken from this point.
It is worth having a copy of sculptor Edouard Lanteri's" book on "Modelling and sculpting the Human Figure". There are many useful measurement guides in this book ie: Using callipers: measure the distance between the ears at the Tragus point and discover that this measurement also equals Tip of nose to Tragus and Chin to middle of Eyebrow. Naturally there will be exceptions but usually this is a good benchmark.
When working from the live model the following are useful measurements.
First pose your model. The head may look straight out in simple pose and Measurements will be similiar. If the head is angled, be prepared for "Clavicle to right Tragus" measurement being different to" Clavicle to left Tragus". Always take your measurements consistently in feet and inches or centimeters.
A Clavicle to Crown of Head
B Clavicle to right tragus
C Clavicle to left tragus
D Right tragus to crown of head
E Left tragus to crown of head
These 5 measurements set the scene for the space your sculpted head will occupy with the Clavicle being the pivotal point.
F Chin to forehead at hair line
G Outer eye to Outer eye
H Inner Eye to Inner Eye
I Base of nose on either side
J Width of mouth
A useful Tip. Draw a line from forehead to chin to indicate the centre of the head and use this as a reference to get the width of the face accurately. Always remember that nobody has a symmetrical face. There is always a stronger side which will differ slightly from the other. This is what gives faces character.
Photos 6 to 8 show the most important measurement positions to get you started.
Photos 9and 10show Dee checking how her sculpture is coming along.
Photos 11 12 and 13 shows that Dee has sketched in a rough profile on both sides, you will notice that more work has been done on the sculpture's left profile. It is very inportant to remember to always rotate your work and bring all the elements together as a whole. It is not a good idea to work up one side without considering the impact it is having on the other.
Dee has put in approx 5 hours working on copying my bronze sculpture of Jade. For a complete beginner, never having worked in clay before I was very impressed at what she had accomplished. Dee has decided to come one day a week until she is happy with her clay model and then I will show her how to make a Two Piece plaster mould and eventually from the moulds show her how to cast her sculpture in Resin Bonze.
To my Blogging followers out there feel free to email me any questions which I will endeavour to answer.
My web site is www.maryquinnsculptor.com
Day 2 of Dee's journey will start shortly.
Mary
