The Cephalic Vein: You're Sooo Superficial

I haven't written much about veins on this blog, and I don't know why. Veins are awesome. Veins are your friends. Their pals arteries aren't too shabby either. And in figure drawing, it's not a bad thing to know how to draw them in the right places. While some vein placement is quite variable from person to person, there are certain veins that we can always count on to peek out at us in the same places. These include the external jugular vein on the neck (which I briefly mentioned in The Anterior Neck: Theme and Variations,) the great saphenous vein on the inner leg, and the basilic, median cubital, and cephalic veins on the arm.

Veins are different from arteries in that they typically carry deoxygenated blood (as opposed to oxygenated blood, which is typically carried by arteries.) There is an exception to this in the case of the pulmonary arteries and veins, which I'd love to explain now but would rather save for a future, general blood vessel post. Who can resist a good general blood vessel post?

For now I just want to show you a nice example I found of a prominent cephalic vein showing on the radial side of the wrist. This is one of two places we may typically see the cephalic vein. (The other is on the upper arm, running over the lateral side of the biceps brachii muscle, just before the vein enters the deltoid furrow, the crease between the deltoid and pectoralis major muscles. I will save that view for another compelling blood vessel post.)

Let's just take a look at this view today:

The cephalic vein, because its superficial location over the radial side of the wrist and its easy access, is often used as a site for I.V. placement. Its course may be fairly straight, or more jagged like the one seen here. It will continue upward on the ventral side of the forearm, run over the lateral side of the biceps brachii muscle, and enter the deltoid furrow, where is often disappears from surface view. If it doesn't disappear there, it will disappear when it runs deep to the clavicle and merges with the subclavian vein.

As a bonus, there are four tendons clearly visible here as well. Let's take a look.

On the radial side of the wrist, just at the base of the thumb, we can see the tendons of extensor pollucis longus and extensor pollucis brevis muscles. The muscles, as their names tell us, extend the thumb, and one is longer than the other. (Just slightly so: The tendon of extensor pollucus longus extends all the way to the first distal phalanx of the thumb, and the tendon of extensor pollucus brevis extends only to the first proximal phalanx, so both can be extended independently of one another. You can read more about these thumb tendons in The Dorsal Hand: The Dorsal Foot's Better Looking Sibling.

On the ventral side of the wrist, we can see the tendons of two ventral compartment muscles, palmaris longus and flexor carpi radialis. Don't be alarmed if you can't find your own palmaris longus tendon; it's missing in 12 to 15 percent of the human population. You can read more about these tendons in The Ventral Forearm: What are those Tendons? 

That's it for now. Thanks for stopping by. More to come soon. Perhaps anterior torso? More superficial veins? Ooh, how about more terminology? It's so hard to decide. We'll see.

More Random Landmark Sightings in the Art of Old Friends

One of my favorite things to do as a medical artist is observe other artists' figure work and search for anatomical landmarks. I especially enjoy doing this on stylized figures that are exaggerated in one way or another. I've done this before with a friend's drawing in a post called Sternocleidomastoid: Don't Forget the Cleido! This post featured the art of my friend Shawn Campbell, a wonderful artist and one of two great art friends I was fortunate enough to meet in middle school (back when it was still called junior high school.) His work is not only beautifully rendered, but anatomy is always sound. And as I mentioned in that post, knowledge of the human skeletal and muscle structure is not only useful when drawing realistically but also when drawing a human (or humanoid) with stylized or exaggerated features.

The other lifelong art friend I was fortunate enough to meet at Lincoln Junior High was Chris Boyd, also known as Crazy3DMan. He and his wife Michelle have also been lifelong art friends with whom I've shared friendship, ideas, meals, conversations, rants and of course, art. Today Chris is a freelance artist who specializes in character design, illustration and concept art, which he creates with both 2D and 3D media. Chris also co-founder of Squirtgun Studios, a Chicago studio that specializes in concept, design, illustration, motion graphics, photography and copywriting. 

Like Shawn, Chris's figure work, no matter how stylized or exaggerated, is always anatomically sound. I was looking at some of his characters recently, and this one caught my eye. The first image shows it alone, and the second has labels I added to show all the wonderful, accurate anatomical landmarks Chris included.

Chris's original soldier illustration.

Chris's soldier sketch with subtle but accurate anatomical landmarks labeled.

Although the smallest pencil marks can signify these surface landmarks, it's still so important that their shape and location are drawn accurately. And they are here. Let's look at some of them more closely.

The image below zeroes in on the thyroid cartilage, the medial epicondyle of the humerus, the head of the ulna, the extensor digitorum tendons, the olecranon process of the ulna, and the lateral epicondyle of the humerus.

The thyroid cartilage is pretty exaggerated on this dude. Which is totally fine, since it's typically larger in an adult male. This is because the thyroid cartilage houses the larynx which manipulates the volume and pitch of our voice. A deeper voice warrants a larger larynx and a larger thyroid cartilage in which to house it. You can read more about this in an anterior neck post called The Anterior Neck: Theme and Variations. 

On the back of the soldier's right hand, we can see the tendons of the extensor digitorum muscle. The muscle itself runs along the dorsal side of the forearm, but its tendons, which insert onto the dorsal side of digits II through V, split apart and become visible on the dorsal surface of the hand. We can see three of these tendons in Chris's drawing. You can read more about the extensor digitorum muscle in my post The Dorsal Forearm Part 2: Which Side Are You On, Anyway? and more about its tendons in particular in The Dorsal Forearm: One Last Encore.

On the dorsal surface of the soldier's left arm we can see evidence of the extensor carpi ulnaris muscle and its tendon. The muscle body is more proximal on the arm and reads as a small bulge with a shadow below it. That shadow is a small furrow that divides the forearm extensors from the forearm flexors. More distal on the forearm, we can see the long tendon of this muscle, just before it runs over the head of the ulna. You can also use the above links to find out more about this muscle and its relationship to the head of the ulna. And to read more about the crease between the two forearm muscle groups, check out The Dorsal Forearm Part 1: Compartment Search. 

The last landmarks we can see in this close up are the lateral epicondyle of the humerus (just barely) and the olecranon process of the ulna. The olecranon process is simply the portion of the elbow we lean on. The lateral epicondyle is just lateral to the olecranon process and is often barely visible when the elbow joint is extended and the arm is straight. But when the elbow joint is flexed and the arm is bent, the olecranon process dips down lower and the lateral epicondyle sticks out a bit. Most artists forget to show both bumps when the arm is flexed, but not Chris. In this situation, the elbow will have two slight bumps-- one more proximal, which is the lateral epicondyle, and one more distal, which is the olecranon process. You can read more about these two structures at The Elbow Joint, Part 1: Anterior View, Supine Position.

Below we have a close up featuring the last two landmarks spotted in Chris's image.

With one very subtle line, Chris has shown the location of the medial epicondyle of the humerus (as opposed to the lateral, discussed above. Unlike the lateral epicondyle, the medial epicondyle can usually be seen no matter what position the arm takes. This epicondyle appears as a small bump on the inner elbow. Just proximal to this bump, we can see a long muscle attaching to it. This is most likely where we'd see the medial head of the triceps muscle, but I didn't label that here. The triceps is one muscle this blog has not adequately addressed just yet.

The last two landmarks shown in Chris's sketch are on the soldier's right ventral wrist. There are two very small marks indicating tendons that can often be seen there. You may want to scroll up to the unlabeled sketch at the top of the page to see these more clearly at first. The second of the two marks is very subtle and difficult to see at low resolution. These two tendons are those of the flexor carpi radialis muscle and the palmaris longus muscle. While the latter is missing in some individuals, it is most commonly present. And when it is, it's often easily visible. The flexor carpi radialis tendon is always there, but it may not appear as superficial. You can read why at my very first post, The Ventral Forearm: What are those Tendons?

I'll be back soon. The next post will probably revisit the elbow joint. I started that series awhile ago and completely forgot about it. Also, requests are always welcome. Until next time!

The Temporal Line: There's a Kansas City That Isn't In Kansas

Now that we've covered basic head anatomy in The Head: Part One of Oh My Gosh, Who Knows?, we're ready to observe the individual bones and landmarks of the skull. The first rule of thumb to establish is that bony landmarks of the head tend to be more prominent and visible in adult males. This is especially evident in the superciliary crest (a.k.a. brow ridge), the mental protuberance (a.k.a chin bump), the zygomatic arch (the bony ridge along the cheek) and the temporal line, which we'll look at more closely today.

The temporal line runs along the side of the head across two separate bones-- the frontal bone, which forms the forehead, and the parietal bone, which, with its bilateral twin on the other side, forms the "roof" of the head. 

The temporal line's name can be a little confusing for those first learning about skull anatomy, because we also have a temporal bone (shown in blue below). But, just to keep you on your toes, the temporal line is not on the temporal bone. The temporal bone, which is also bilateral, lies lower down on the side of the head. It's the bone on which the external ear rests, and in which the delicate inner ear structures lie. It's quite an elaborate cranial bone, so we'll take time to look at it and its many surface features later.

This whole situation was summed up nicely by one of my anatomy students last spring. Several students were quizzing one another in preparation for an upcoming skull test, and as they reviewed the temporal line, one said, "the temporal line is not on the temporal bone-- kind of like there's a Kansas City that isn't in Kansas." Indeed!

So let's take a look at the structures involved:

The temporal line (shown in red dashes) is a subtle ridge that runs across the frontal bone (shown in green) and the parietal bone (shown in peach). The temporal bone is shown in blue, but the temporal line does not run across the temporal bone.

Several anatomical structures in this area of the head have all or part of the word temporal in their names. The temporal line, the temporal bone, the temporal fossa (which is the shallow depression on the side of the cranium), the temporalis muscle (a muscle that rests in the temporal fossa), the temporal lobe of the brain (which is the part of the brain that lies on the sides of the head), and several temporal arteries and veins (blood vessels that run through this area). The only of these that we can observe directly on the surface, though, are the temporal line and the temporalis muscle (which we can sometimes see moving when an individual is chewing.)

The slightly sunken area on the lateral skull, just below the temporal line, is known as the temporal fossa.

The temporalis muscle rests in the temporal fossa, just below the temporal line (shown with a red dashed line). The movement of this muscles can sometime be observed when the figure is chewing.

As you can probably guess, most of the temporal line is obscured by hair (unless, of course, the individual in question is losing said hair). At its anterior end, though, it often shows up on the sides of the forehead, where hair would not get in the way. This is one of the skull landmarks that seems to be more prominent on older males-- particularly the bad guys in comic books. (Google Professor X to see what I mean.)

If you look around a little bit, you should have no trouble seeing examples of the temporal line. Even on an individual with a full head of hair, look for a ridge on either side of the forehead, positioned at the same degree laterally as the outer edges of the orbits.

What did I say about older males? Just take a look at Fred Thompson's temporal line. And really, next time you see your dad, take a close look at his forehead. There's a very good chance you'll see at least part of his temporal line. Perhaps all of it, if he's losing his hair!

Older males do not, however, hold a monopoly on the temporal line, as this photo of a bald Britney will demonstrate. She has quite a few prominent skull landmarks, so we'll revisit this image soon. And you thought her abs were defined!

Uncle Fester can join the fun, too. Not much hair blocking this one.

Hey, even individuals sewn together from spare parts can have a temporal line. Dr. Frankenstein was clearly meticulous in his attention to head detail.

The great Oz has spoken! His temporal line rules all! It's prominent as well as quite elaborate. Enough so to have haunted me as a child, anyway. Did anyone else worry that this guy was going to show up in their closet when they were trying to fall asleep?

And finally...

Here is one last shot of the temporal line, this time on my pal Tim. This is from my book, The Figure Artist's Book of Anatomical Landmarks, for which Tim was kind enough to pose. Tim is an accomplished a capella singer, so be sure to check out his group Chicago Voice Exhange!

Well, I think we've about exhausted this topic. Next time we'll either cover more head landmarks, or possibly to finish up one of the other several areas we've begun. Until then, go out and look for some temporal lines! They're everywhere! Even Kansas City.

Human Anatomy for the Artist at Chicago Comic Con

Just a quick post to let you know I'll be at table 3138 at the Chicago Comic Con this week, August 9 through August 12. I'm very happy to be sharing a table with Spiro's Greek Myths, a wonderful comic created by my friend Spiro Dousias.

Spiro will be selling his awesome comics about ancient Greek myths as well as his paintings and action figures of Greek gods and goddesses. I'll be selling my handy little anatomy book, The Figure Artists Book of Anatomical Landmarks. This is a good time to get yourself a copy without having to pay any pesky shipping fees! Also, bring your figure drawings by my table, and I'll be happy to check them out and answer any anatomy questions you might have.

I hope those of you planning to attend the Con will stop by and say hello. I'd love so much to meet you in person!

The Head: Part One of Oh My Gosh, Who Knows?

The human head is incredibly complex-- certainly too complex to try to write too much about it in one post. When I took gross anatomy in graduate school, we spent as much time dissecting the human head as we spent on the rest of the body. And for good reason. There's just a heck of a lot going on in there. On this blog, of course, we won't be discussing any of the deep structures, like the brain, the twelve cranial nerves, or the elaborate labrynth of cerebral blood vessels. But in this area of the body, even the surface landmarks are packed in. I would like very much to savor them one post at a time, but before we do this, we she should probably start with a head overview. 

The head differs a great deal from the rest of the body, even landmark-wise, because not much muscle shows here. There are muscles that obscure most of the skull, but they are very thin and flat and, as such, don't show much on the surface. Most of the facial muscles insert into the skin (as opposed to inserting on bone) because it's the skin that they move-- for the sake of facilitating facial expression. But most of the muscles themselves don't show up individually.

Sometimes we can see evidence of two cranial muscles, the temporalis muscle and the masseter muscle, because they contract a bit when we are chewing. The masseter, the thickest muscle on the skull, lies over a portion of the mandible, just anterior to the ear, and sometime even its striations can be seen during chewing. The wide temporalis muscle lies on the side of the head, just above the ear, and sometimes we can see it, too, flexing, when an individual is chewing or clenching. 

Movement of both the temporalis muscle and the masseter muscle can sometimes be seen when an individual is chewing. These are among the only muscles on the head that can be identified individually on the surface.

But other than these occasionally visible muscles, most of the head's prominent surface landmarks are bone. We'll cover each of these in future posts. But before we begin this, let's look at the basic structure of the skull.

The skull has two basic portions, the cranium and the facial region. These are good to keep in mind when drawing the head, because each has its own shape and the two together help define the form of the head. The cranium is the oval shaped, hollow portion of the skull that encases and protects the brain. It shaped somewhat like an egg and is tilted upward anteriorly. The facial region of the skull is the area on which the facial features (such as the eyes, nose, and mouth) rest. It's shaped like a mask and hangs off the front of the cranial egg shape. 

The image below shows a lateral view of the skull alone and with outlines of the cranial and facial regions. The cranium is shown in pink and the facial region is shown in blue.

The cranium is the egg shaped portion of the skull than encases and protects the brain. The cranial region of the skull is outlined in pink here. The facial region, outlined in blue, is the mask shaped portion of the skull. It's the area on which the facial features rest.

It's important to consider the shapes of both these regions when drawing the head. The region shapes may also be used to determine proper head proportions and to position the ear. When measuring any human head from its most anterior to its most posterior point, the halfway point almost always falls just behind the mandible and just in front of the ear. When drawing a head, placing a vertical line halfway back on it helps to properly position both the back edge of the mandible and the front edge the ear. This is demonstrated in the image below.

When divided in half from front to back, the halfway way point on the human head falls just posterior to the mandible and just anterior to the ear. This is helpful to know when placing an ear on a drawing of the head. The black lines here show the anterior and posterior halves of the head. The verticle strip of beige shows where tissue depth has been accounted for on the anterior side (since its greater here than on the posterior side.) The red line shows the placement of the ear behind the middle line.

In upcoming posts we will begin examining the individual bony landmarks of the skull more thoroughly. These include the superciliary crests, the zygomatic arch, the mental protuberance, the angle of the mandible, and the occipital protuberance, to name a few. This will take, well, who knows how long? But I don't mind! Do you? 

The Figure Artist's Book of Anatomical Landmarks: Here's the Order Form!

The Figure Artist's Book of Anatomical Landmarks has long been a reference guide for my anatomy students, but it's now available to all using the link below! The cost is $30 within the continental U.S. and can be paid with Venmo using this link or with Paypal using this link. Shipping and handling rates will be added to orders outside the continental U.S. Please email me at kristin@gm-studio.com for overseas shipping rates. More information about the book can be found below.

The Figure Artist's Book of Anatomical Landmarks is a quick reference guide to help the artist identify and understand the lumps, bumps, creases and depressions on the human body. Its clear, concise text and dozens of labeled photographs are organized by body region for handy reference. Its small size and soft cover make it convenient and portable, whether keeping it on your drawing table or taking it along to life drawing sessions. It is 7" x 7", 48 pages, black and white, with a soft cover. This book is best used in conjunction with more traditional anatomy books, as it is not a book of anatomical diagrams. It's consists primarily of figure photos with the anatomical surface landmarks labeled and accompanying descriptions of each, much like those seen on this blog. Here are two sample spreads, which are indicative of just about every page in the book.

 Thank you for your order! I am grateful and humbled by your support!

My New Baby! (Don't Call it Ugly.)

The first proof is in! It's small, it's one color, and some might even call it, um... ugly. But hey, it only had a three week gestation period. As its proud mother, I think it's beautiful, and I hope you will, too. (Or you could always lie to me.) In any case, it's packed with information, and I think it will be a very helpful resource to any figure artist exploring anatomical surface landmarks.

One thing I will admit, though, is that I'm going to have to spring for better quality paper. The stock I used for the proof just isn't working; it's super absorbent and the photos got so muddy. And the stock change will mean a change in layout as well. To make a long story short, the current book size won't allow for any other stock. So I have to do some rearranging. This means the book won't be printed quite as soon as I thought, but it should still be done by sometime in the next two weeks. I will post details as soon as possible!