SCULPT YOUR HORSE
Deanna Cummins
Copyright©2011
Lesson Two
Subject Basics
In this lesson you will learn the
basics of horse structure, its anatomy, conformation, and movement. This lesson
will give you the key points for sculpting.
Understanding your subject is one of
the most important parts of art.
The basic shapes of your subject
Looking at your subject as a series of
shapes will help you tackle the figure more easily. Everything in this world
has a basic shape which is what we see initially when we first view it. But
each object is also made up of many small shapes. Breaking down an object into
smaller shapes will give you the needed tools to do any kind of art.
Understanding shapes and how they fit
together is the first step in seeing in reality.
The horse as a whole
The silhouette of the horse is
something we are all familiar with because it is the first shape we naturally
notice when looking at a horse. Each silhouette has its own unique shape.
Depending on the breed of horse, the silhouette may be long and lean, short and
compact, large or small. The horse may also be in different positions--standing
square, rearing or trotting.
Look at the photo below. Notice that
each large part of the horse has a shape. Most of these shapes are circular.
These are the basic shapes of the horse. Understanding these shapes is the
first step to sculpting. These are the first clay shapes you will add to your
armature later in this course.
The shapes of a horse will always stay
the same whether he is moving or standing. They will never become distorted in
3d art! The shapes may elongate or condense depending on the movement of the
horse. For example, if the horse is in a
collected canter, the shapes will be bunched together. For a horse that is in an extended canter the
shapes will be spread apart.
Breaking the horse down into parts
Breaking the horse down into parts will help
you to tackle the complexity of the horse’s body structure.
The body has two sets of exterior shapes, the
basic which you have seen earlier in this lesson and the muscular. The muscular
are flexible shapes which unlike the basic shapes are able to distort with
movement. The natural density of the muscles allows them to be flexible and
change shape. Even though the muscular shape will change with movement, the
basic shape will always stay the same. The photos you will see below are of the
same horse in different positions.
The hindquarter muscles will lengthen
when the horse extends his leg rearward, and in the forehand, the muscles will
lengthen when the horse extends his leg forward.
In the above photo you can see the hind
leg is coming forward causing the muscles to condense (bunch).
Here you can
see the leg is extending back causing the muscles to lengthen.
The horse does not posses any muscles
below the knee or hock. For this reason the leg will only bend at its joints
and will not change shape. The leg is constructed of many small bones, tendons
and ligaments. These tendons and ligaments act as a pulling mechanism of the
lower leg.
The shape of the neck varies a lot.
This will greatly depend first on the breed and its conformation (body type)
and secondly on how the horse is worked (actual physical conditioning).
A western pleasure horse will have a low set
and straight neck; the horse performing in this discipline will often posses a
small amount of muscle tone in the neck and throughout his body. Barrel and
cutting horses will often have more muscling throughout the entire body do to
the more demanding work of the discipline. The dressage horse will have a high
set arched neck. These horses are also more muscular throughout their bodies as
well do to the condensed and extending work they are asked for in the
discipline.
Breeds such as the Quarter horse have
many different body types. Each line is bred for a specific western sport
therefore you will see body types which will assist the horse in that sport.
The same goes for the Arabian and other very versatile breeds. Breeds such as
the Warmblood and the Welsh pony have been bred
specifically for jumping and dressage which require a compact body. The
Thoroughbred was originally bred for running which gives him a longer and leaner
body type then the Warmblood. The heavy breeds such
as Drafts and Frisians have been bred for pulling giving them a strong and
heavily muscled forehand. Knowing the origin of the breed will give you a
clearer understanding of the horse’s body type and use. Though you will be
focused on your own horse, it is still important to know the background of your
horse’s breed. It will help you to
express more then just a nice looking sculpture. It will give you a deeper insight
into the emotional aspects of your art which is visible to the viewer.
It is also important to notice the
personal traits of each individual horse. Every horse is unique giving an
artist the opportunity to be creative in making the sculpture unique. This is
one of the most important attributes to creating portrait art as we are doing
in this course. Some “conformational faults” or unique structure can be
stressed or over looked depending on its importance to the horse’s
individuality.
Conformational faults such as a swayed
back can be lessened in a sculpture to make it more appealing as a portrait. Or
small eyes can be made to look somewhat bigger to make the horse look more
attractive.
You do want to avoid taking it from one
extreme to the other. For example, if enlarging the eyes, make them ½ size larger than actual proportion. By doing this it becomes more attractive to
the viewer, but still looks like the individual horse.
You want to pay attention to detail when
you are doing a portrait! For example, the amount of hair an individual horse
has will change his appearance dramatically or a horse with an oddly shaped
croup will give him that unique individuality you want to capture.
The head and other parts of the body
The head has the most detail when
compared to the rest of the body.
The head has veins, muscles, wrinkled
skin, cartilage in the ears and nose, eyes and eyelids and the mouth. By far, the face is the most detailed part of
the horse’s body.
Though the horse has a great amount of
detail on his face you want to avoid over expressing this in your sculpture
particularly when it is a small size. This is because over detailed faces will
cause the sculpture to look dead.
To make a horse’s face look expressive
and unique you want to look closely at the characteristics and what aspects are
important for this individual.
Some examples--does this horse have
prominent veins? If so, then this would be on attribute to include in the
sculpture. Another possibility would be the size of his nostrils and does this
horse flair them often? If so, then it would be a good idea to flair this
horse’s nostrils. Is this horse’s head chiseled “bony” or does he have a
“fleshy” muscular head?
Look for such distinctions in your own
horse.
Look at your horse as if you are seeing
him for the first time and you will be able to see him “anew” rather than in
the “familiar”.
Structure of the horse (Anatomy and
Conformation)
The basics of conformation are proportions
(comparing the size and shape of body parts with other parts of the body) and
angles. Below is suggested reading to help you create your sculpture. If you have not yet taken the course
“Conformation and Selection for Performance, it would be a good idea to
complete that course as soon as possible. http://www.horsecoursesonline.com/index/index_conformation_description.html
Basic Conformation and Anatomy
For this section it is suggested you
read “Horse Conformation Structure, Soundness and Performance” Published by
Equine Research.
(You can order the
book through the college book store… https://www.donblazer.com/order/order_breyer_books.html
Chapter 2
Head
35-51,
Muscles
of the head 57
Other Structures in the head
59-61
Chapter 3
Neck
67-74,
Muscles
of the neck 79-84
Chapter 4
Withers
87-94
Chapter 5
Chest
95-100
Chapter 6
Forelegs
101-123,
Muscles
of the shoulder 126-133
Carple Joint and muscles of the knee 144-148
Cannon
149
Fetlock
152-153
Pastern
160-163
Chapter 7
Body
165-175
Chapter 8
Hindlegs 191-209
Muscles
of the hindquarters 216-224
Stifle
228-232
Gaskin
233
Hock
238 and Muscles and tendons of the hock 240-244
Cannon
246
Fetlock
and pastern 249-252
Chapter 9
Feet
253-275
Horse in motion
Every gait and movement has its own
body form.
If you notice the body of a horse at a natural
walk, it is long and strung out, relaxed and usually with the head carried low.
He swings his legs slowly out in front of himself with a low arc from the
ground. It is somewhat of a sweeping movement of the legs.
When he is trotting the head is held
higher and the hind legs thrust from behind pushing him forward. The forelegs
lift with a more dramatic knee action causing the hoof to make a larger arc
from the ground. The horse covers more ground at the trot and has more power
than at the walk.
At the canter the horse condenses and
lengthens his body as he strikes off with his leading legs. In this motion the
horse places most of his weight on his hindquarters which gives him a very
strong thrust of movement allowing him to cover a large amount of ground. At the canter, the horse bends significantly
at the loin, bringing his hindquarters well under his body so that he can drive
off in the next stride.
The trotting horse
When the horse is moving at the trot he
is always lifting diagonal pairs of legs. For example, his left hind legs moves
in sequence with his right front leg.
When the horse is trotting the diagonal pairs are lifted to the same
degree at all times. When sculpting, you always want to make sure that the knee
and the hock are level with each other because they are lifted in sequence.
The walking horse
The
sequence of the walk is, for example, right hind, right fore, left hind, left
fore. The hind foot is coming forward
and the corresponding front foot must move out of the way. The hind foot will over-stride the hoof print
left by the corresponding front foot. The arc that the horse creates with his
feet is very low to the ground with little knee and hock action.
The cantering horse
The canter is a rocking back and forth
motion of the horse’s body. He shifts his weight to his hindquarters then lifts
his forehand while tucking both front legs.
When cantering, the horse bends in his loin area. Though he will have
some rocking back and forth movement, his back does not bend.
In all the motions of the horse his
basic shapes stay the same.
Study of the head
The head is where you will find the
most detail on your horse’s body. It is
important to capture the individuality and uniqueness of your horse!
You will want to look for small unique
details such as an uneven muzzle, oddly shaped chin or exceptionally large
jowls.
Facial expressions are revealed
through the horse’s eyes, ears and nose. It is obvious that a horse is relaxed
if his ears are not pricked, his eyes are soft and his nose is free of
tension. That may be the look you want
for your horse.
Muscle tension plays a large part in
the overall expressions of the horse’s body! By adding small detail such as
wrinkles to a muscle you can show some tension or alertness to your horse. Observing and applying the small details is
what will bring your horse’s personality to your sculpture.
Behavior and Temperament
Observation of behavior and expression
are important.
The horse is most often alert and aware of his
surroundings. Therefore you will often notice small reactions from the horse
such as an ear turned to one side or his head held higher to observe something
far away. Other reactions of the horse can be more dramatic such as him
prancing with his tail flagged or naying with his
nostrils flared and head high.
To capture the spirit of your horse you
will need to concentrate on his temperament and behavior. Observation is the key! Observe your horse in
different situations and decide what behavior and temperament you want to
capture in your sculpture.
Make notes of the things you think make
your horse your horse and what action or pose you think most reveals your
horse’s personality; the notes will help you decide the composition you choose
for your sculpture.
Assignment:
Part 1: On a full body photo of your horse standing
square, find and draw the basic shapes of the body. Scan and email the photo to
me.
Part 2: Choose and photograph your horse at
the walk, trot or canter. On the photo,
point out the distinct movement which reveals the gait the horse is performing;
send the photo with complete explanation to me.
Part 3: Please send a short essay of the notes
you took while observing your horse.
Send your assignment to: Deanna Cummins dncummins06@yahoo.com
Please
be sure to put your full name on all work.