At least Tenko realizes that he can use figures and objects in real life and observe off of them, though an observational sketch assignment is not the best time to practice that. It took me years to realize I didn't have to completely memorize the figure from imagination and that I could use models.
Tenko didn't follow the assignment. He was suppose to draw the figure, not 'create' one. I tend to use that criticism when teaching others how to draw (which is interesting because I don't think my skills are that skill for me to teach others how to draw LOL). Imagination is good and accepted, but it was beyond the scope of the assignment and Tenko didn't learn a thing about form and posture (or whatever he was suppose to gain from this exercise). I tell people that if you draw what you think you will never know what it is. That is why when people draw things like eyes or noses, they tend to fail because we all think we know what those look like, but without careful consideration to things like bone structure and anatomy, we really don't know a thing.
At least Tenko realizes that he can use figures and objects in real life and observe off of them, though an observational sketch assignment is not the best time to practice that. It took me years to realize I didn't have to completely memorize the figure from imagination and that I could use models.