A new exhibit on the sixth floor of the UTA Central Library invites visitors to see the human body in a way they’ve never seen before, through the eyes of Art 3348 students. Their life drawings blend art, anatomy and digital technology, transforming a traditional study of the human form into something dynamic and deeply detailed. 

Under the guidance of adjunct assistant professor Hallee Turner and Morgan Chivers, Maker Literacies Librarian, students worked with Anatomy.tv, a digital resource from UTA Libraries. The platform allows them to rotate the body, peel back layers, and examine poses from every angle, giving a level of insight and control that traditional studio tools can’t match. 

The assignment challenged students to create three drawings: one focused on the skeleton, another combined skeletal and muscular structures, and a final piece highlighted musculature. Using the digital model, they could study every detail, zoom in on specific structures, and take the time needed to get it right, something often impossible in a traditional studio setting. 

For Sonia Herrera, Anatomy.tv offered a whole new approach to figure drawing. 

“We usually have a plastic skeleton in class, but that’s pretty limited,” Herrera said. “I lose count of the ribs sometimes, but with the program, you can hover over them and keep track.” 

Even for students with prior experience, analyzing bones and muscles required a different kind of focus. Art education major Kim Vu found that the digital resource offered something that life drawing often cannot: time and control. 

“With live drawing, you can’t hold someone in the same position for very long. This digital resource let me study the proportions more carefully,” Vu said. “It made it easier to measure things.” 

For drawing major Cade Bennett, the ability to manipulate the 3D model offered a fresh perspective. 

“Usually when I’m drawing on my own, I’m working from a static image online,” Bennett said. “Here, we could move the model, adjust angles and zoom in on details.”

Even something as seemingly simple as the rib cage became a challenge. 

“The rib cage is really intricate,” Bennett said. “It took a lot of analyzing to get it right.”  

Each of Bennett’s drawings took about three hours, and now his work is part of the exhibit. 

“This is my first time having work in an exhibition at UTA,” Bennett said. “It’s cool that people outside the art world get to see it.” 

The project also illustrates the power of collaboration between faculty and Libraries staff, connecting students with resources that expand the classroom experience. 

“Anatomy.tv is designed as a clinical and medical resource, but the students used it creatively,” Morgan said. “They applied it to create drawings with dynamic lighting and strong detail, and it’s been exciting to see that process.” 

For Turner, the project showed how digital resources can expand what students can study in the classroom. 

“I think that it is a great educational resource for students to use. We don’t often get to see what’s happening under the skin and Anatomy.tv gave students a chance to study that,” Turner said. “Resources like this expand the horizon of things that we can do.” 

At UTA Libraries, staff regularly work with faculty to integrate digital tools into teaching, opening doors for students across disciplines. In this case, a platform built for medical education became a tool for artistic exploration, giving students new ways to study and understand the human body. 

The exhibit will be on display through April 22 in the sixth-floor Parlor at the UTA Central Library. It’s an invitation to slow down, look closely, and see the human body in a new light, just as the students did in the classroom.