GRID STEP. You can print out the base construction lines and start drawing on tracing paper, or you can draw the grid layout yourself using the following steps.1) At the top of the sheet, determine the location of the head and draw its conditional size using an oval. 2) Draw a vertical line through the middle of the head. This will be the central vertical line of the drawing. 3) From the upper border of the head, draw a mark half the height of the head. This will be the upper boundary of the figure. 4) From the top of the head, draw eight segments equal to the height of the head and one segment equal to one-third the height of the head. 5) From the central vertical line of the figure, measure and draw: • Two segments equal to the width of the head – to the left of the line. • Four segments equal to the width of the head – to the right of the line. • One segment equal to half the width of the head – to the right of the line. Through the boundaries of the segments we draw vertical lines. The extreme left and right segments are the vertical boundaries of the drawing.

STEP 1. Mark off the width and height of the picture. Add guidelines for the Grim Reaper’s body. Draw his head, skull, scythe and pedestal.

STEP 2. Draw the Reaper’s cloak, neck and snath of his scythe.

STEP 3. Add guidelines for the arms, legs and skull proportions of the Grim Reaper.

STEP 4. Outline the general shape of the cloak and skull. Add the Reaper’s jaw-bones and the blade of the scythe.

STEP 5. Draw the shape of the legs and arms. With light lines, draw the Grim Reaper’s eye-sockets, frontal bone, hood and cape. Detail the shape of the snath.

STEP 6. Add the nasal hole, cheek-bones, cloak folders, the shape of the hood and finger phalanxes of the Grim Reaper. Detail the frontal bone, lower jaw and stems of the scythe.

STEP 7. Work on the figure, paying special attention to detail.

STEP 8. Contour the Grim Reaper, trying to vary the thickness and darkness of the line. Add more detail. Erase all guidelines.