3/4 view in art? help?!?!?!?

Question

For an art assignment, I am suppose draw somebody from my life.

I am fairy confused at one of the directions:

"Draw the head and shoulders only, in a 3/4 view. Show all facial features."

What is a 3/4 view? Help?!

Answer 1

All right, picture someone standing directly in front of you and facing you straight on.  We'll call this the '4/4' or '1' view.

Now imagine someone standing in front of you, but they're facing completely sideways-- in profile.  You can only see one eye, the shape of the nose, and half of the mouth, etc.  We'll call this the '2/4' or '1/2' view.

In math, 3/4 comes between 1/2 and 1-- and the same applies in art.  In other words, try to draw someone who is not quite entirely in profile, and not quite entirely facing you.  That is 3/4.  The Simpsons, for instance, is often drawn primarily in 3/4 view.

Answer 2

Just don't draw the body only the head and the shoulders.Pretend they are right in front of you.

Answer 3

The 3/4 view shows the head a quarter turn away from looking straight on at the subject. One half of the face is partially obscured. I drew up a quick sketch for you if the explanation's not clear enough:

http://i34.tinypic.com/2q1gpx4.gif