Observational Drawing Of A Skeleton

As a start to the advanced animation skills workshop we are studying quadruped locomotion. Looking closely at how four legged animals move, I should be able to pick up the rhythms of animal movement and be able to animate various gaits. To begin with, I have been looking at quadruped skeleton's. By observing the bone structure of a quadruped, I will be able to get a good sense of what is underneath the animal's and work out the mechanics of how they move. This will make it easier for me to eventually animate a walk cycle.

This observational drawing is of a monkey skeleton. I spent 45 minutes looking and mimicking what I could see in front of me. By doing this exercise, I am already a lot more informed about how a quadruped moves. Looking at the skeleton you can see that the back legs are a lot longer than the front and are therefore more bent. This extra length and bend gives momentum. All the power comes from the back legs which push the rest of the body forward. This is something that all quadrupeds share.

In the case of a monkey skeleton, you can see that the feet closely resemble that of hands. Unlike a horse or pig which have simple hooves, the monkey has various bones which allow the feet to work just like human hands. This is what gives the monkey great grip when climbing trees &C.