The nude in art has a long history, dating back to Renaissance times. Personally, I find the nude form in contemporary art exciting as often I find it the main focus of artistic creativity. Rubens’ female nudes took on fresh meaning in art as he painted women in glorious flesh tones. As a long practionare of drawing and painting from the naked form, I’m always urging students that working directly from the naked figure will very quickly improve their drawing and artistic skills. Often, particularly in the 19th century, people found the idea of the nude offensive. One only has to read the reactions to Edouard Manet’s painting of nude women in contemporary situations in his painting Olympia (1863 and 1865; both Musée d'Orsay, Paris). Yet even today people can feel uncomfortable when confronted by the naked form in art.
