Figure/gesture study

Hello again, but greatest job on your grace and punch to your most static pose, but these forms seem too mushiest to me, on top of the timidity of gesture lines. Why don't you go for 50 minutes of 2 minute poses?

The reason why is as a result, you can and will get the least blandest, but least stiffest, but least sloppiest, but the most solidest, but flowing, but liveliest drawings. For most details, please look up a free PDF of Drawn to Life Vol. 1.

Good luck to you and your journey.

I enjoy the soft shading on the right side, indicating a light source on the left. The soft shading on the stomach region makes sense and I really like that part specifically. Are there supposed to be any cast shadows on this piece? That would help avoiding a muddy or messy airbrush look to the shading, which appears a little bit under the left breast.

Shading aside, I think you should spend more time on quick gesture drawings, focused more on the shape itself rather than rendering. The shapes are quite flat. The feet, for example, look paper thin and the toes and heel both lack a sense of volume. The right arm has a very sharp elbow and the shape of the forearm is too heavy towards the wrist, and the hand is too small. The torso also lacks the structural definition of ribs or other body landmarks.

Secondly, your lines are very harsh and dark. They aren't scratchy which is good, but they are wobbly, harshly dark and insecure. You want a gesture to flow with long, arcing lines.

When you go to do your gesture drawing class(and I do suggest doing a class mode if you already don't!), keep your marks light and flow with your pencil instead of crushing it into the paper. observe the figure for a couple seconds to see what you can glean from the shapes--a foot is like a triangular prism, and the ribcage is like an egg. That sort of thing. Maybe drop the shading for a month or do it after a longer session of just gestures. Good shading relies on a strong understanding of three-dimensional forms, and you waste your time by doing one without the other.

All in all though, I really do enjoy this work of yours. I can tell you've been working on bodily shapes in places like the legs, because the thigh and calf bulge and taper in a pleasing way. You just seem to struggle a bit with foreshortening, which will improve as you focus on understanding form. Excellent practice work and thank you for allowing me to give you feedback!