human figure dimensions

[jartzh]

Does anyone have a quick reference on the dimensions of a 12" tall person. length and width? I tried the 7 1/2 head trick and it never seems to work.

[doris]

male or female ? strong, heroic, or what is what you want ? dimension proportion vary greatly, form 6 heads high upto 9 heads high...the widths varies between 1.75 (small females) upto almost 2.5...
if we know more of what you want express maybe we can give more precise information

[Donald K. Mertz]

In my style of carving I use the RULE OF THREE both for the face proportions and for the body proportions. For the Face, the Rule of Three is that the face is divided into thirds: hair line to eye brow is a third, eye brow to bottom of nose is a third and bottom of nose to bottom of chin is a third. (Rule of Three between nose and chin: bottom of nose totop of lip is one third, top of lip to indentation between bottom lip and chin is a third and indention to chin is a third) The Rule of Three for the body is: Shoulder to Waist is a third, Waist to Top of Knees is a third, Top of Knees to Bottom of Feet is a third. The Rule of Three keeps every thing in proportion no matter the size of wood, from miniature to full figured heighth and both realistic and caricature so that when one first looks at a completed carving, it just looks right proportionately. Of course, if one was to do classical sculpture, then a lot of measurement and head length formula would need to be employed. It is always good to study art instructional books to become familiar with the various proportions of the subject one wants to carve, be it human, animal, acquadic or fowl. Nothing takes the place of research and study to guide the inner eye to see things artistically.

[Mitchell]

IMO, the 7 1/2 will make the head appear too small. You should try 6 1/2 for something that's more realistic in appearance and even 4 1/2 for a more caricature look. For larger carvings, I would recommend staying closer to the 6 1/2 scale. As doris states, it would help a bit if we had a better idea of what you want to carve.

You may want to look at Mr. Mertz's site to get a good idea of proportions as he does a very good job.

[Mitchell]

If you look in this thread, "andre" has a good link in his post.

Caricature dimensions

[jartzh]

Thanks,
As a note I am doing a High Relief and I need some standing roman soldiers for the background. I always try the formula and get them to thin or wide.
So its really the width that concerns me.

Love the rule of 3.
How does that work on width?

[Donald K. Mertz]

Rule of Three also applies to width, the body at the shoulders is three heads wide (width not length of head). Of course, if one carves the head a little larger for artistic emphasis because the head is the first and most interesting part of a carving to view, then one would use the basic Rule of Three heads wide by having a larger head and less wide top of the shoulder on either side of the head. One way to try this is to do a practice piece by carving a figure to its basic form without any detail to see how it looks. Good luck and have fun.

[doris]

so you want probably go for strong, a little heroic male... i suggest a proportion of 8 heads high, and 2 heads wide, making them 7 heads will make them look less heroic..., so if you want 12 '' high, you need make them 3'' wide, and the head 1.5'' high and about 1'' wide...i attach a stickfigure so you can see how it would look

[jartzh]

Doris,
Is this figure 2 heads wide ? it looks wider than that.
And where does the 3rd line from the top cross? (bottom of ribs or belly button)

Thanks, I do like this better than a 7 1/2 model.

[doris]

yes is 2 heads wide ("head" means height of head, not width)... whoops, yes 3rd line is somewhat too high, i eyeballed them lines...but essentiall is right...many sportive, strong men have these proportions, so you cannot go wrong with them