Artist Uses Female Mannequin as Reference and Gets Roasted by His Mother

Anyone who works with illustration knows that having good references is essential. Many illustrators and mangaka, such as the author of Made in Abyss, even buy mannequins to better understand body proportions. However, one artist recently took an unexpected hit from his own mother after showing his reference mannequin.

Artist Uses Female Mannequin as Reference and Gets Roasted by His Mother

The Japanese artist known as AroON shared an awkward yet funny moment on his X account. He revealed that he often uses a mannequin dressed in women’s clothing as support material to draw poses and study how fabrics fall. The photo he posted showed his personal mannequin setup.

When his mother saw it, she could not resist teasing him. According to his post, she jokingly asked, “Isn’t there any real girl who could model for you?” The comment, followed by laughter, left the artist completely speechless.

Within the art community, it is very common for illustrators and manga creators to rely on articulated figures, mannequins, and 3D models as references. The biggest advantage is practicality. Artists can freely adjust poses, angles, and clothing depending on what a specific scene requires. In AroON’s case, he explained that he even bought certain clothing items specifically to better understand how particular fabrics behave, such as the side silhouette of a knitted cardigan.

The post quickly went viral, and many fellow artists said they could relate. Some jokingly asked whether he also buys new outfits for the mannequin, while others suggested gifting it a wig for its next “birthday.”

There were even comments asking why he did not simply use his own mother as a model. The mangaka replied humorously that he definitely did not want to imagine his mother posing in a bunny outfit for reference.