by Jared Steinberg

Created on: January 02, 2009

As an artist, I am amazed over the controversy that always seems to surround depictions of the human nude form. It doesn't seem to matter whether the subject is male or female, many tend to favor a conservative perspective when it comes to viewing nude art, let alone displaying such a work in their home or office. As an experienced artist, my question would be- why wouldn't an artist want, at some point in their career, to create the most natural symbol of his or her own existence? Here are some reasons I believe compel artists, myself included, to commonly express their talents in rendering the human form in its most natural state.

Historically speaking, there is a great tradition interpreting the nude figure. Depiction of the nude stems from some of the very earliest findings of any artwork in the world. Dating back to The Stone Age, some of the first known works of art are nude female statuettes with great emphasis placed on reproductive features. These sculptures are believed to be fertility goddesses serving a utilitarian purpose.

Culturally, the nude came into greater prominence during the Early Classical Period (approximately 500 B.C.) of Ancient Greece. The Greek nudes were truly celebrations of the human body, rendered to perfection through idealized realism. The art is congruent with the overall progressive thinking of the time as demonstrated, for example, in physical achievement through the Olympic Games, the development of theater, philosophical writings, and mythology.

It was the Italian Renaissance, however, that ultimately propelled the nude figure to one of its most recognized incarnations in Western Art during the 15th and 16th Centuries. Through drawings, paintings, and sculptures artists, such as Leonardo DaVinci and Michelangelo, as well as their contemporaries and disciples, delved into the very mechanics of the nude figure in order to understand it from the inside-out, providing a solid foundation for their knowledge base.

Artists of the Renaissance Period studied human anatomy meticulously with the aid of both cadavers and live models. These careful observations were the culmination of science and art which had been kept secret by the Church for years prior. This combined with newfound knowledge of painting recipes and techniques compelled artists to learn, process, and progress their ability to produce realistic art. I believe the seeds planted during the Renaissance laid the foundation for the western world's interest in the nude form

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