[Highfive]

Yeah yeah, I know I know! Not another nude post...



This female character is going to be twirling fire-flails in a erotic dance to an audience that I haven't yet decided.

Could I please get some crits on her anatomy? Are all her proportions correct? Is there anything you'd change to make her appear more sexy, or more realistic?

Overpaints are allowed and greatly appreciated.

[ November 27, 2001: Message edited by: Highfive ]

[Svanur]

Looking good.

I think that the lower part of the leg might be a little longer. Seems to short.

[Little Beefucker]

You've got a nice crisp look going with the outline -- looks like it took a lot of blood and sweat to get that worked out, so I don't want to suggest anything that would require you to change it...

But if you'll forgive me, I'm going to.

Heh heh.

IMO, "real" and "sexy" rarely share the same territory. Particularly when artistically presenting a certain ethnicity, you can get boxed in trying to keep the look up. In your case, you've hit it on the head. 1000 points for real anatomy (which is not to say that she is not still sexy -- as much subjective taste as it is technical whatnot). But in doing this you are sacrificing lots of sex.

If you wanted to make her more, um, erotic, you might try an elongated pose. Right now she looks like she's stooped forward, which is great perspective, but not the best seat around the fire. If this girl were dancing in front of you, how would her hips be wiggling? Is she dancing AT YOU? Is she teasing the crowd in general? The sex chemistry can be all in the eyes, all in the body... It depends on your target.

I personally like girls dancing just for me (because I am a big asshole, heh heh). Perhaps if you opened her eyes, you could create a penetrating stare -- but still, the pose seems a little off. She's going AWAY from me. On the other hand, if she's entertaining EVERYONE, closed eyes are better, because there's no "distraction" or special audience-goer hogging her up. And STILL, I'd suggest standing her up and doing a little hip-thrusting thing.

Oof. Sorry. Reading too much into it. The quality is all there. Just needs, I don't know, that hook...

[Little Beefucker]

But hey, you know what, take a step back! If you look at the piece without any preconceptions, I think it stands brilliantly as a spiritual dance WITHOUT ANY NEED TO BE SEXY AT ALL. Like I said, you did perfectly getting the cultural/anatomical/everything. Usually these practices are in some honorable traditional. Very tribal. Right now, viewing it as a done project, you've got this innocent, fulfilled girl deep in a trance -- which has way more impact! If "sexy" is your priority, it could use some fine-tuning, but what you've got right now tickles the art gland.

[Highfive]

Moo-who-hah-hah! Here we go! *rubs hands*

Svanur - You're right. Thanks for pointing that out.

Little Bee - thanks for the compliment on the outline. I've gotta say that my linework pales in comparison to Death Dealer's.

I agree with your opinion that the difference between "real" and "sexy" is very wide. That's expressed in the girls of Manga and Anime, who have enormous eyes, gigantic breasts balanced on thin legs and apostrophes for noses. That's not what I want in this image as you can tell.

The audience will be all around her in this image, so yes, she is teasing the crowd as much as the viewer and her eyes are closed so that she's not impressing anyone in particular. Having the eyes open and staring at the viewer is appealling, but I thought having the eyes closed would look sexy in a (dare I say) innocent kind of way, with all of her attention is dedicated to moving to the music.
As for her moving away from you, that's actually to show off her butt (You have read in too far, Little Bee, damn you! How the hell did you write that crit so god-damn fast? ) She's not meant to be aware of that, though.

[Highfive]

L.B. I think you're delving into the definition of what sexy is! (Nothing wrong with that!) Does the subject have to have her attention fixed on the viewer to be sexy? Would she be more innocent if she was ignoring everyone in the scene? Is it all a matter of personal taste?

[maceface]

sheesh highfive what is it with you and nude pics......heh jk
it looks really pretty cool!
i love the solid line weight...it sort of reminds me of a sticker design

[Little Beefucker]

On the Subject of Sex:

Heh heh! I won't pretend any kind of authority on this. But as far as ME, and all my hentai tastes go, I'm much more into the pure and unrealised come-hither element than that which pushes sex at you. Looking around, you see a lot of people who are deliberately sexy (and mean), or casually sexy (never realising the power they have, bwa ha ha!)... And then you have your downright hideous types, but they have unfortunately resigned to their caste and don't want or try for much more.

There is also, personally, a distinct sexiness in the whole FOREIGN look, vis. not American. I absolutely hear you on the anime, and am glad we share the same view where it comes to natural beauty, ethnicity, etc. There's this one girl who is dabbling in the same pool, though I don't want to criticise any of her work (particularly not on this thread).

So, hmm, really, I might be having fun listening to my own voice here. To me, an underneath element is way sexier than the type that leaps off one's face, so to speak. Maybe that's sexy in itself. Maybe there's NOTHING SEXY at all about most girls, but then the fact that they don't realise this makes them terrifically attractive.

Making eye contact is crucial too, but only for the deliberate vixen type. Given this, your girl is better off with her eyes closed. She is untouched and unaware, as opposed to gruesomely seductive (taking a little liberty with phrases now, heh heh). Penetrating stares are aggressive -- absent or otherwise, eyes convey a lot of body language, and usually convey "I'm hot stuff" (turn-off alarm, AWWWOO-GAH!)...

Sorry to go on and on. You make me feel smart about this stuff.

[ December 02, 2001: Message edited by: Little Bee ]

[Highfive]

Just when I thought this post had disappeared for good...

maceface- I don't know. What IS it with me and nude pics? This is my first one! Yeah, I'm trying to develop this line weight style further.

Little Bee - Good grief! Mate, I'm totally off this pursuit of the true meaning of sexiness!! It was a crazy thing to figure out in the first place. Everyone's tastes are so disverse, that's all that can be said. Sure, the "Barbie-doll" look can always be considered an ideal stereo-type to go for, but that's what I want to steer clear of.
I showed this pic to my girlfriend and she couldn't understand why she had to be naked. Then I remembered Joachim's girls that he posted a while back. People were going nuts over those, and they were all clothed. They weren't modestly clothed, though. There was a bit of cleavage and loads of leg, but they just had such appealing looks on their faces. I think that's what made them work.