Spirit & Force is the elegantly designed second book of master figure artist Karl Gnass, one of the most sought-after teachers in Los Angeles, whose students include luminaries of the animation and CGI industries. A follow-up to his first book, Spirit of the Pose, the 272-page Spirit & Force dives deeper into Karl's unique approach of infusing life force into drawings, while grounding them in classical skills, like form, tone, and volume. Karl's whimsical musings encourage readers to consider their own artistic intentions, while his gorgeous illustrations serve as inspiration on elevating drawings from competent to exceptional.
"It's one thing to learn how to draw," says Karl. "It's another to learn how to draw with intent--to infuse a sense of story and purpose in the figure."
Karl has been teaching drawing, painting, and storyboarding for over 40 years and at Disney for 20--as well as Dreamworks, Sony ImageWorks, Nickelodeon, and Warner Bros. Features Animation, among others. He also storyboarded for Disney Television Animation, for DarkWing Duck, Gargoyles, and Aladdin Prince of Thieves. In film, he developed the character expressions and anatomical breakdowns for Stuart in Stuart Little, and character breakdowns in Harry Potter.
Spirit & Force is the elegantly designed second book of master figure artist Karl Gnass, one of the most sought-after teachers in Los Angeles, whose students include luminaries of the animation and CGI industries. A follow-up to his first book, Spirit of the Pose, the 272-page Spirit & Force dives deeper into Karl's unique approach of infusing life force into drawings, while grounding them in classical skills, like form, tone, and volume. Karl's whimsical musings encourage readers to consider their own artistic intentions, while his gorgeous illustrations serve as inspiration on elevating drawings from competent to exceptional.
"It's one thing to learn how to draw," says Karl. "It's another to learn how to draw with intent--to infuse a sense of story and purpose in the figure."
Karl has been teaching drawing, painting, and storyboarding for over 40 years and at Disney for 20--as well as Dreamworks, Sony ImageWorks, Nickelodeon, and Warner Bros. Features Animation, among others. He also storyboarded for Disney Television Animation, for DarkWing Duck, Gargoyles, and Aladdin Prince of Thieves. In film, he developed the character expressions and anatomical breakdowns for Stuart in Stuart Little, and character breakdowns in Harry Potter.