sitting Drawing Poses

In A Chair, On the Floor, and Side Views

Female and male sitting drawing poses to reference – nice and easy for beginners (or experts).

Free and easy to use 🙂

• Casual • Laying Down • Relaxed

Casual Drawing Poses

sitting drawing pose base for gesture figure body anime and manga reference casual relaxed woman female girl legs crossed

sitting drawing pose base for gesture figure body anime and manga reference casual relaxed woman girl female ledge on floor

sitting drawing pose base for gesture figure body anime and manga reference casual relaxed man male boy office chair on phone

Laying Down Drawing Poses

sitting drawing pose base for gesture figure body anime and manga reference laying down on floor girl female woman

sitting drawing pose base for gesture figure body anime and manga reference laying down on floor girl female woman tired sleeping on pillow

sitting drawing pose base for gesture figure body anime and manga reference laying down on floor girl female woman tired

Relaxed and Tired Poses

sitting drawing pose base for gesture figure body anime and manga reference laying down on floor girl female woman elf tired side view

sitting drawing pose base for gesture figure body anime and manga reference laying down on floor girl female woman elf side view

sitting drawing pose base for gesture figure body anime and manga reference laying down male man boy in chair drinking wine side view

Drawing Sitting Figures

Notes and Tips For Beginners

Side View

When drawing sitting characters, be very aware of the curve of the spine – it’s the part that causes the most hassle for beginners. The back should curve into a “C” shape rather than staying flat or S shaped. This bend also makes the belly fold and buckle at the middle, creating two general sections above and below the belly button. ‘

If you want to get the idea quicker, get in front of a mirror, make sure no one is around, lift your shirt, and buckle over – you’ll see what I mean. Remember you have a body. You can study it to see how bodies work.

Sitting on Floor

When drawing characters sitting on the floor (or in a squat) be mindful that tissue is malleable i.e. it squishes into whatever it’s pressed against. You must also be aware that the extent to which the tissue will squish will vary depending on the character’s body fat percentage and/or muscle mass. The more tissue, the more squish.

When squatting, thighs and calves will squish against each other. When sitting on the floor, the buttocks and thighs will have a squish to them.

Sitting In A Chair

If a character is sitting in a chair, the same rules apply as above, except you must now take into account the body of the chair. Is the chair soft or hard? Does it have arms that will block parts of your character?

A softer chair will cause the tissue to squish less, whereas a hard chair will cause more squish of the tissue.

One benefit of a chair with arms is you can place your character’s arm in front of the stomach if you aren’t feeling confident with how to render a bent-over tummy yet.

Male vs. Female

Men and women have the same root anatomy: bones, muscles, and tissue placement, but women have two major differences you should be aware of as an artist.

The first is women’s bodies tend to carry more body fat on average and less muscle tissue. Remember that fat is squishier than muscle. When drawing a female character sitting – be aware they are a little softer and their bodies (on average – it’s not a rule!) will tend to respond more to pressures on their body whether from a chair, the floor, or stockings. It’s your art, so you get to decide on your character’s physical composition.

The second is they have breasts (giggle). When drawing a female character sitting (in a hunched over position) remember that their breasts (depending on their size) might hang over the midriff, blocking out some of the information. For smaller cup sizes this is less of an issue, but if you wish to draw a plus sized female this is important to render your forms.

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