Nude (art)
art genre for works that have as their primary subject the unclothed human body / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In general, the term nude refers to people who are not wearing clothing, or who are wearing less clothing than other people would expect. When talking about nude in the context of art, the idea is to show the unclothed human figure. This is known as the nude. In the visual arts, this can be a statue, such as the famous statue by Michelangelo shown. It can also be a painting. Nudity in painting is common. Often, painters made paintings that showed a scene of figures of mythology. The figures shown would often be nude, or wear very little clothing. The Ancient Greek were fascinated by people doing sports naked. In the Middle Ages, there was less activity, but afterwards, in the Renaissance it was more common again. History painting is about showing scenes of history, or of mythology. Very often, the figures shown are naked.
Unclothed figures often also play a part in other types of art, such as history painting, including allegorical and religious art, portraiture, or the decorative arts. From prehistory to the earliest civilizations, nude female figures were generally understood to be symbols of fertility or well-being.[2]
The Khajuraho Group of Monuments were built between 950 and 1050 CE. They are known for their nude sculptures, which comprise about 10% of the temple decorations. Only very few of them are erotic. Japanese prints are one of the few non-western traditions that can be called nudes. There, the activity of communal bathing in Japan is portrayed as just another social activity, without the significance placed upon the lack of clothing that exists in the West.[3] Through each era, the nude has reflected changes in cultural attitudes regarding sexuality, gender roles, and social structure.
A book on the nude in art history is The Nude: a Study in Ideal Form by Lord Kenneth Clark, first published in 1956. The introductory chapter makes the often-quoted distinction between the naked body and the nude.[4] Clark states that to be naked is to be deprived of clothes, and implies embarrassment and shame, while a nude, as a work of art, has no such connotations.
In modern times there was a change. This change was that the line between nude, and naked became less clear. One of the first artists to show this was likely Francisco de Goya. Between 1795 and 1800 he made two paintings, which are known as the Clothed Maja and the Nude Maja today. The paintings show the same model, in the same pose. In one paiting the model is wearing clothes, in the other, she is naked. In 1815, this painting drew the attention of the Spanish Inquisition.[5] The shocking elements were that it showed a particular model in a contemporary setting, with pubic hair rather than the smooth perfection of goddesses and nymphs, who returned the gaze of the viewer rather than looking away. The painting is famous for the straightforward and unashamed gaze of the model towards the viewer. It has also been one of he earliest Western works of art to show a nude woman's pubic hair without obvious negative connotations (such as in images of prostitutes).[6] Some of the same characteristics were shocking almost 70 years later when Manet exhibited his Olympia, not because of religious issues, but because of its modernity. Rather than being a timeless Odalisque that could be safely viewed with detachment, Manet's image was assumed to be of a prostitute of that time, perhaps referencing the male viewers' own sexual practices.[7]