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Part II · Anatomy · Chapter 19 of 31

Anatomy VII: Legs and feet

Legs carry the weight and feet meet the ground. Get these right and a figure stands; get them wrong and it floats.

Bones of the foot from the inner side, schematic, labelledTibiaTalus (ankle)Calcaneus (heel)FibulaNavicular + cuneiformsMetatarsalsInner arch (dashed)Phalanges (toes)Foot, inner side (schematic). Weight rests on the heel and the ball; theinner arch lifts between them.

The leg

The thigh bone angles inward from hip to knee, so the knees sit closer together than the hips. The outer thigh curves more than the inner one high up; the inner calf is lower and fuller than the outer. These alternating curves give the leg its rhythm.

The knee is a box with the kneecap set into it. From the side the leg is not straight: the thigh curves forward, the shin is straight at the front and the calf curves behind.

The foot

The foot is a wedge: high at the ankle, low at the toes. The inner side has a high arch; the outer edge stays nearly flat on the ground. The inner ankle bone sits higher than the outer one.

Weight rests on the heel and the ball of the foot. Draw the foot first as a simple block, then cut the toes into the front at an angle — the big toe is longer and points straight ahead, the others curl down.

Reference table

PartBones / musclesNote
ThighFemur; quadriceps, hamstrings, adductorsAngles inward toward the knee
KneePatella, femur, tibiaSquare block from the front
Lower legTibia, fibula; calf and shin musclesSharp shin, full calf
AnkleTalus; malleoliInner bump high, outer bump low
HeelCalcaneusCarries the weight at the back
ArchTarsals and metatarsalsHigh inside, low outside
ToesPhalangesBig toe has 2 bones, the others 3

Historic plates

Public-domain plates from Vesalius (1543), Leonardo's anatomical notebooks and Gray's Anatomy (1918). Tap to zoom into the detail.

Two studies of a man's left leg in profile by Leonardo da Vinci
Two studies of a man's left leg in profile, Leonardo da Vinci (c. 1500s). Plate / drawing. Source: Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
Bones of the left foot, top view (Gray's Anatomy, fig. 268) by Henry Vandyke Carter for Henry Gray
Bones of the left foot, top view (Gray's Anatomy, fig. 268), Henry Vandyke Carter for Henry Gray (1918 edition). Plate / drawing. Source: Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
Bones of the foot, outer side (Gray's Anatomy) by Henry Vandyke Carter for Henry Gray
Bones of the foot, outer side (Gray's Anatomy), Henry Vandyke Carter for Henry Gray (1918 edition). Plate / drawing. Source: Wikimedia Commons · Public domain

Master studies

Studies of Hands and Feet by François Le Moyne
Studies of Hands and Feet, François Le Moyne (early 18th century). Red and black chalk, heightened with white, on beige paper. Framing lines in pen and brown ink. Lined. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art · CC0 (Met Open Access)
Dancer Adjusting Her Slipper by Edgar Degas
Dancer Adjusting Her Slipper, Edgar Degas (1873). Graphite heightened with black and white chalk on pink wove paper (now faded); squared for transfer. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art · CC0 (Met Open Access)
Practice
  • Draw your own foot from the side and from the front, as a block first.
  • Copy the Leonardo leg studies, tracing the alternating curves.

Watch

How to Draw Feet with Structure - Foot Bone Anatomy · Proko

How to Draw Feet · Proko

Simplifying the Foot for Easy Drawing · Proko

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