How to Draw a Running Person
Now we’ll practice one of the most important skills for any artist – drawing people in motion – and learn how to draw a running person.
Now I will tell you and show you in detail how to draw a running person. It will be a simple lesson that you can easily repeat and get useful skills.
This step by step tutorial shows you how to quickly and easily draw a person in motion. There will be no complex construction and additional elements. You will see that everything is quite simple and quickly complete this tutorial.
Pay special attention to the position of your arms and legs while running. When performing other elements, you can use your imagination. You can even change the person’s hairstyle or color the clothes a different color.
Materials
- Pencil
- Paper
- Eraser
- Coloring supplies
Time needed: 35 minutes
How to draw a running person step by step
- Sketch the base for the running pose.
Before adding details, you need to define the main body masses that determine proportion and motion. First, sketch the head as a simple oval and a narrower, elongated oval beneath it for the torso. Tilt both forms forward to demonstrate movement. This tilt will guide all later parts of the running posture.
- Sketch the person’s simple facial features.
Now, draw the eyes as two small ovals, mark a short line for the nose, and a small curved mouth. After that, add thin eyebrows above the eyes. At this stage, you can outline any other details, such as adding a beard or sports glasses.
- Complete the head contour.
After that, draw the hairstyle that follows the curve of the head and slightly leans back. This simple trick will give the running person a more action look. Outline the ear as a small C-shape below the hairline, positioned opposite the nose.
- Draw the T-shirt of the running person.
Npw, draw a short neck cylinder or a curved neckline of the T-shirt, and attach slightly slanted shoulders. After that, draw the short sleeves with light curved lines. The shirt should follow the body’s lean so the pose looks symmetrical and convincing.
- Sketch the bent arms and fists.
The arms in a running person drawing are among the most important details to show the rhythm of motion. From the bottom edges of the sleeves, draw the upper arms, followed by the lower arms. At the end, sketch the hands as rounded, simplified shapes.
- Illustrate the legs in motion.
Legs, just like the arms, are the most important details of the running person image. From the lower torso, sketch a thick thighs, then knees, and long calfs. You can convey the speed of a running person by drawing the legs closer together or further apart.
- Draw the shoes of the running person.
After that, sketch the sneakers with a visible sole and a shallow heel. It is very important here to give the sneakers the correct look, so that both feet exactly match the angle of the legs, as previously indicated. For more detail, you can also add laces.
- Define and smoothen the final contour.
To prepare crisp line art, remove scaffolding. Erase the head centerline, if it was added before, the unnecessary parts of the initial head and torso construction ovals, extra overlaps inside body, and stray marks. Redraw the important and closer contour with smooth and confident strokes.
- Paint the simple running human figure.
Color hair and skin, then give the T-shirt one hue and the pants another. Fill the sneakers with a neutral color and lighter or darker soles. Paint the eyes black with white highlights. Additionally, you can sketch motion lines behind the person as in cartoons or comic books.
Easy Running Person Drawing Tutorial
First, draw the head and short hairstyle of the running person, sketching the top slightly tilted forward to show motion. Add the neck and arms, one reaching out ahead and the other bent backward.
Draw simple hands with short fingers. Then, illustrate the torso and legs in motion: the front leg extended forward and the back one bent.
Once the outline is complete, add basic facial features, such as the small eyes, eyebrows, and a light smile. Clean up the sketch and darken the final contour.
Color the running person drawing with warm skin tones of any shade, a brown running shirt, and dark blue jogging pants.
