The page discusses the difficulty of drawing the feet, particularly of women, and presents an easy method involving geometric shapes like triangles and squares to simplify the drawing process. It describes how to use these shapes to accurately construct the feet and position them correctly. The method is part of a larger discussion that will be elaborated in subsequent problems in the text.
THE FIRST PART
XVII.
The feet are the pedestals of the body and one of the main supports on which a person rests; next to the face, they are the most difficult part to draw, especially the feet of women, where all who have learned to draw confirm they have always found the greatest difficulty in rendering them. Therefore, I have experimented with an easy method, namely, using a triangle and a square, as shown by the figure A, but B is a long square, upon which the shape of the leg is easiest to support. I divide it by a line into two parts, where the ends can easily be constructed within part C. If the parts are turned backward, this mode lowers them, thus making a triangle, like a circle, noted as D inside it, which touches the edges of two parallel lines, so the feet will form this way. But E and F, their method is made using a triangle, as will be shown more thoroughly in Problem XVIII by another definition.
Feet are the columns of the human body and are one of the foremost elements on which a man must rest, after the face the most difficult to draw, especially the feet of women. So, all who have tried to draw admit finding it the hardest part. I have then, according to my opinion, devised a very simple method using a triangle and a long rectangle, similar to figure A but also B is a long rectangle, with which the leg can rest most easily on. I divide it into two parallel parts, where the end of the line correctly meets at point C, with circles like D that touch the edge of two parallel lines, allowing the feet to form as they should. Methods E and F make it with triangles, as will be more fully shown in Problem XVIII.
The feet are the pillars of the body and one of the prominent members the man rests on, after the face, the most difficult to draw, especially the feet of women. There must be knowledge in distinguishing precisely where they sit. Therefore, I have made an easy calculation using a triangle and a circle, much like figure A illustrates. However, on the underside of the leg lies a long rectangle, on which everything is placed in two equal sections for drawing. Once divided, it loosens down correct lines through equal fields. Making the end point rest on its precise and correct placement in alignment with others draws them accurately in it. But method E F does pull them back through stretching, allowing a further appearance, as shall be overviewed in Problem XVII by another instruction.
Translation Notes
- "Pedestals of the body" mean the primary support structures of the human form, akin to feet in anchoring the body's balance. The concept of breaking down shapes into triangles and squares for easier drawing is intended to simplify anatomical drawing for learners.