Product Description

Jenó Barcsay, a professor who taught applied anatomy at the Budapest Academy of Fine arts, offers a detailed portrayal of the human body for the fine artist in 142 full page plates. From the entire skeleton and the joints in and out of motion to all the muscles and even facial characteristics, every body part appears in close-up and from varying perspectives, with discussions of anatomical construction.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #328889 in Books
• Published on: 2001-09-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 342 pages

About the Author
Professor Jeno Barcsay taught applied anatomy at the Budapest Academy of Fine Arts. He died in 1988.

Customer Reviews

An anatomy class standard
This book was the standard text for the anatomy class I took in art school and it's obvious why. Every part of the anatomy an artist would have to know to draw figures convincingly is shown. And the figures are not idealized, but realistic. They have some fat to them, just like most of us do. There are plenty of anatomy books out there if you want idealized or superheroic figures, such as the Dynamic book series by Hogarth. But if you want to be able to draw figures the way they really look, study and sketch from this very thorough book.

Amazingly, highly detailed, classic reference
This is a well-known, outstanding & classic reference in drawing the human figure. It's also maybe too much anatomy for most artists, I believe. If you're looking for a book that'll detail & depict more than you probably need, this is certainly a good place to start!

First off, I just have to say: some of these pencil drawings are absolutely amazing(!). Beautiful & detailed- It's the biggest selling point to this book. Usually it's his rendering of individual muscles here that seem to be his best- his completed figure work being certainly above-average as well. Bones & muscles are rendered in super-clear detail, and simplified drawings & outlines are included to help with artistic representation. It's not an all-around figure drawing book though. For better treatments on proportions & basic shapes see: Walt Reed's The Figure; Jack Hamm's Drawing the Head and Figure; and Andrew Loomis' Figure Drawing For All It's Worth. A highly detailed treatment, I usually prefer anatomy books that are even more simplified, concise, and smaller in size. I think most artists do; there're too many anatomy books to choose from these days, and big books can be hard to frequently carry & use.

Sterling publishing seems to agree: they just released a new, tiny, 'concealed spiral' hardback version to meet this very need. And it works pretty well, if you can get over the shockingly small size when compared to the original, *full-sized* hardback! That was the biggest surprise when I received this & opened the amazon box: I didn't even think to consider this new version's size & dimensions. I actually have the original sized hardback, with its dimensions of about 12-7/8" x 9-5/8" x 1-1/8". This new, tiny, Sterling spiral edition is exactly as listed: 8.2" x 7.6" x 1.2". My 'original sized' copy is copyright 1953, printed in 1995 by Barnes & Noble Books. I've never seen the paperback version. Truth be told, between these 2 versions I have, I kind of prefer the bigger sized hardback. I'm glad I have both though: There's no denying the convenience of Sterling's tiny, spiral edition; and production quality is top-notch, with its glossy paper, complete with its 'new car' like smell(!). But you lose some of the gorgeous detail in the pencil work in a book so small in size. To Sterling's credit, most of this minute detail is still very visible. But if you'd compare the 2 versions, I think you'd agree that the bigger, original version is a bit easier on the eyes. Both versions have their benefits.

If you want an even more simplified, concise, and smaller anatomy book in pencil, try Louise Gordon's How to Draw the Human Figure: An Anatomical Approach. It's a pretty solid, small, paperback work, although Barcsay's effort is far more beautiful in its rendering.

My other favorite anatomy books include Bridgman's Constructive Anatomy, and Hogarth's Dynamic Anatomy. Both available today!

Terrific learning tool!
I am learning to sketch and have this and another book of the same title. Despite the shared name, what a world of difference inside!

This is a detailed guide to human anatomy for an artist at any level. It teaches you both the physical and mechanical aspects of the body inside and out -- from what bones and muscles look like to how joints fit together and move, and what the resulted motion looks like. It also looks at all the different elements of the body, whether large or small, from several different perspectives, and from inside to out. The images are both highly detailed and natural.

In addition, all the images in this book are beautiful sketches done by a great artist. Rather than showing glossy photos (like the other book I have) that do not reveal the same kind of details an artist might, this book shows how a pencil and paper might be used to create acurate anatomical images. I find the various plates in the book not only helpful in illustrating what the body looks like, but also how one might depict it.

All in all, this is an extremely well-put together book for its purpose.