This is a long overdue update, one of a few, regarding the progress of the fellows as well as what I did over break. This is the second time I am writing this, as I clicked a bookmark link and lost the draft. Part of my goals for this project was to create reasonably accurate renditions of these species, and as I've progressed, I've realized just how momentous a task that can be. But to do some, to create generally acceptable, if novice, works, I needed to study anatomy. This was a notion that I realized at the beginning of this project, and is partially the reason I bought Mark Witton's Paleoartist's Handbook, which included notable guides and chapters discussing the various layers and facets of organisms. But, finshed that, I realized I needed to know more--anatomy was critical not just to understanding the words in the papers I was researching for but also for understanding how the bones of specimens articulated, where muscles attached, where feathers and integumentary systems may be. It is impossible for one to full understand a topic as complex as paleo-anatomy in such a short time-scale; but, I needed to know some of the basics to make designs. The differences between dinosaurs and mammals, between dinosaurs and reptiles, even between dinosaurs and birds. Things like knowing that the heel projections on mammals, nor their kneecaps, are present in these carnosaurs. Knowing that birds, nearly every species, is 65 million years removed and heavily modified for flight. So, in addition to Mark Witton's handbook, I researched online, and went to Book Nook, a used bookstore in Glen Burnie to search for anatomy books. Book Nook, despite having literally thousands of books dating back to the early 1900's, did not have many anatomical resources; however, it was a pleasure to explore, and I did find a 1970's collector edition of Gray's Anatomy. While it specializes in human anatomy, it has been incredibly useful as a resource for general anatomical terminology and the specifics of various systems. I also found online copies of Ellenberger's An Atlas of Animal Anatomy for Artists, which discussed how to illustrate the specifics of anatomy and came with dozens of beautiful drawings of a variety of organisms. Elliot Goldfinger's Animal Anatomy for Artists was similarly helpful, especially so in that it included a broader range of animals within the animal kingdom. The was an interesting, seemingly obscure, upload of Ghetie Avian Anatomical Atlas, which depicted chickens and birds from a variety of angles. Because birds are so distinctly different and derived than my species, certain aspects have been helpful, as they are the organisms' closest living relatives. In addition to the books I have been able to find online, in bookstores, or on my own shelves, I have found some online articles and images designed by communities of paleoartists and paleontologists. One featured a paper written comparing skull musculature in various therapod species with crocodilians and birds, with multi-angled and brilliantly colored pictures. Another resource was Scott Hartman's site: an illustrator who has done hundreds of skeletal drawings (something I am increasingly sure that I will not be doing -- I am certainly not equipped to do so, and it may even be misleading) of various species, including Spinosaurus. Hartman provides anatomical diagrams specific to dinosaurs, the example being a therapod, depicting aspects not seen in many modern day creatures, such as massive caudofemoralis muscles in the tail and gastralia bones in the abdomen. I took a variety of notes and re-outlined some of the essentials of my project. The paper (I've had a variety of technology problems and data lost this year, paper has proven, oddly enough, safer) is scanned and attached here: Using these resources, I have done some studies of the anatomy, including some building on skeletal diagrams in order to develop and sketch out poses for final illustrations. My first attempt (earlier than the other sketches) was messy and rough, but it gave me a deeper understanding of general structure and attachments. While perhaps not the most descriptive or even intelligible to a reader, it was critical for me to make. I apologize for quality -- handwriting may not transfer well through scanning and uploading, nor does the some of the details of colored pencil, but rest assured, it is legible in person.
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AuthorJulia Youssef Archives
April 2021
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