Shirtless male torsos are good to draw as a way to practice musculature and anatomy in your drawings. Men usually have more defined stomach muscles than women so it is a good way to study the muscles of the body. Many drawings include shirtless men, from comic books to fashion illustrations, and even Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel.
Draw an isosceles triangle with the point facing the bottom of the page. Divide the triangle one third of the way up from the bottom. This is the basic shape of the chest, stomach and crotch. Draw these lines lightly on the page as they are only for reference and will be erased later.
Round the shoulders at the top of the triangle, making them as broad and muscular as you want. Extend the shoulder lines down into the arms. Include the biceps and forearm muscles. Draw the hands.
Return to the top of the shoulders and connect the neck and head. Add lines in the neck to emphasize the collar bones and neck muscles. The collar bones start below the center of the neck and angle up and out toward the start of the shoulders.
Draw the outside of the ribcage from the inside of each arm to the waist. Curve the line slightly outward for the waist and hips. Men's hips are less wide than their shoulders so don't curve the hips out too much or the figure will begin to look feminine.
Draw a line at the hips for pants. Curve the crotch line and extend that line down into the legs. Fade out the pants or complete the entire figure with legs and feet.
Draw the muscles and other details for the torso. Sketch the belly button in the center of the torso about three fourths of the way down. On both sides of the belly button, draw a small line from the outside of the waist toward the crotch. This is the "V" cut muscle.
Draw a light line down the center of his stomach for abs and six small curves to show the individual muscles. Only draw two if you do not want the man to look like a body builder.
Add the pecs above the abs. The pecs start at the center of the chest and curve under and back up to the underarm.
Finish the sketch with the head, face and hair. Shade under any muscles to give the drawing a more three-dimensional look. Erase your original reference lines.
Tip
Refer to a picture while you draw.
Writer Bio
Catherine Paitsel is a professional writer pursuing her master's degree in international affairs at The New School. Paitsel graduated magna cum laude from Pace University with a bachelor's degree in political science. She studied fashion design at the Pratt Institute and is also a licensed New York real-estate salesperson. Her interests are investing, sociology, entrepreneurship, design and enjoying New York City.
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