How often does an aspiring artist read a book or take a class on drawing the human body, only to end up with page after page of stiff lifeless marks rather than the well-conceived figure the course promised?

Though there are many books on drawing the human figure, none teach how to draw a figure from the first few marks of the quick sketch to the last virtuosic stroke of the finished masterpiece, let alone through a convincing, easy-to-understand method.

That changes now.

In Figure Drawing for Artists: Making Every Mark Count, award-winning fine artist Steve...