The Naked Woman in Art History – A Look at Female Nudes in Painting Over the Centuries (Part 1)

The depiction of the human body has been a central theme in art history since ancient times. In fact, a significant portion of the paintings that have influenced history are nude depictions, more precisely, portraits of naked women. The naked woman has always exerted a fascination on artists and viewers.

To illustrate, we can take Botticelli's "The birth of Venus" , Modigliani's "Lying Act" or "The origin of the world" by Gustave Courbet. The genre of nude painting can serve a variety of image themes over the centuries. Henri Matisse , Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, Paul Cézanne, Édouard Manet , René Magritte , Peter Paul Rubens and Egon Schiele include the most famous artists who have intensively devoted themselves to the exposed femininity.

The female body is an extraordinary source of inspiration for artists, as it simultaneously embodies the forbidden, daydreaming, desire, and beauty. Nude paintings are often a source of controversy in the art world and frequently lead to scandals.

The history of female nudity in art is unique, as different communities and cultures have embraced representations of the naked human body to varying degrees over centuries and millennia.

In fact, the naked body in art always mirrors the social standards of different eras and places. In doing so, the nude painting of various epochs, movements, and regions always also references the way things were depicted, which were inseparably linked to the respective notions of morality and decency.

Although nudity is often associated with scandalous sexuality, it can also have other layers of meaning. These range from interpretations from mythology and religion to the study of anatomy and the expression of ideal beauty and aesthetic perfection.

The Female Nude – In the Tension Between High Art and Vulgarity

Even though the aforementioned works of the female body clearly seem artistic and (from today's perspective) hardly scandalous, we must, as attentive observers, identify a trend: Naked women were rarely freed from a representation primarily associated with sexuality in most cultures throughout art history.

This was probably because they had fewer rights than men. Precisely for this reason, it is very likely that the female nude in art was only officially recognised after women had gained greater political rights. This acceptance occurred gradually over time. Therefore, it seems that the history of the representation of the female form went hand in hand with the history of emancipation.

The stages of emancipation were metaphorically marked primarily by art from Greece, Italy, and France. Especially from these perspectives, it becomes clear that the position of the naked woman in art is unique and attempts to establish a lasting balance between art and obscenity.

When a contemporary artist makes the naked female body on the subject, he almost inevitably moves on the line between artistic and "pornographic" representation . This can be seen as an extreme as a spectrum with two poles. And female acts are the balancing act somewhere in between.

Prehistory and early history: the fertility nude and the "realistic" nude

There was a strong connection between the worship of fertility gods and the practice of female nudity in Paleolithic art . The first representations of the female human body shape are known as "paleolithic venus figures" . They are characterized by the pronounced facial features of voluminous women with wide hips and breasts that protrude or hang down.

This is visible in the oldest pictures of the female human body shape. Limestone, ivory or bacon stone are the materials found in most of them, and they come from the Aurignac time . In addition to Venus von Willendorf the Venus of Lespugue , the Venus of Savignano , the Venus von Laussel and the Venus of Doln Vstonice one of the most famous examples.

As for the subject of painting, the naked woman, on the other hand, was already depicted in rock paintings in the French-Cantabrian region of northern Spain and in the Mediterranean. In these works, female motifs are represented in the context of community scenes, depicting hunting or rituals and dances. The Tassili n’Ajjer is a good example of how women were characterised during this time through a simple yet astonishingly realistic form of representation.

In the southeastern corner of Algeria, near the border with Libya, there is a mountain chain called Tassili N'ajjer . Since it is a national park, a biosphere reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a significant part of this plateau is protected by all three organizations. It is the home of cypresses and historical monuments.

The Tassili n'Ajjer is famous for its rock paintings, which are between 9,000 and 10,000 years old and mainly depict herds of animals, huge wild animals like elephants, giraffes, and crocodiles, as well as humans engaged in activities like hunting and dancing. As for female nudity, Tassili was known for its rock art. Seen in this light, the image of five women with high hair and bare breasts, all of whom have an incredibly "realistic" physique for that period, is an interesting observation.

Ancient Egypt: Everlasting Beauty for the Afterlife

A substantial aspect of ancient Egyptian figurative culture is that women are rarely depicted in their older years. Female figures were delicate, lovely, and in their prime, so it was hoped that in the afterlife they would take on this likeness, as art had immortalised them in this way.

Egyptian art was not realistic because this society cared about its image. To immortalise people in their most beautiful and youthful form, there are few photos of pregnant women or female bodies after childbirth. However, scientists noted a shift in women-centered art during the Third Intermediate Period (1075 to 652 BC).

At that time, rounder, thicker bodies with larger, sagging breasts appeared. Nudity was normal at this time, so some social classes and professions, such as fishing and Handmade, required the body to be unclothed. A wall painting with naked dancers in a tomb of Nebamun (approx. 1350 BC) shows servants, dancers, acrobats, and prostitutes working unclothed.

The lost tomb of Nebamun was an Egyptian burial site from the 18th Dynasty, found in the Theban necropolis on the west bank of the Nile, present-day Luxor. Famous decorated tomb scenes from this tomb are on display at the British Museum in London. The plastered walls of the tomb are adorned with colourful wall paintings depicting idealised scenes from the life and activities of that time. Among his most famous works are hunting scenes and half-naked banquet dancers.

Ancient Greece – the human body as an ideal

In ancient Greece, the concept of the nude first gained increased relevance in art. At that time, sporting events during religious festivals glorified the human body in an unparalleled way, especially the male body. The athletes who participated in these competitions competed without clothing, and the Greeks saw in them the embodiment of all that is truly admirable in humanity.

Therefore, it was only natural for the Greeks to equate the male act with triumph, size and even moral superiority. These are ideals that seem to be inherent in the beautiful files shown in Greek art.

While depictions of naked athletes were presented as offerings in temples, the images of gods and heroes from Greek mythology took on a form that resembled their athletic appearance. The sentiments prevalent in other ancient cultures, where nudity was often associated with shame and defeat, stand in stark contrast to the Greeks' veneration of the body.

These embodied a completely different attitude. A well-known example of the prevailing view outside of ancient Greece is the biblical account of Adam and Eve. In this narrative, the first man and the first woman confess their nakedness and are humiliated and even punished for it.

In contrast to the man, the naked woman a different genealogical line. While the first -mentioned figure represents a embodiment of the divine essence of reproduction, the man has his origins, which is an idealized human athletes. Numerous representations of exposed women were used in the course of history to represent fertility gods, such as the Middle Eastern Ischtar .

Aphrodite also belonged to this group and was portrayed as a being that has both the ability to give life and to be haughty and seductive. In contrast to their contemporaries in the Middle East, the Greeks preferred a clothed representation of Aphrodite for many years.

But around 350 BC. Praxiteles created a naked version of this goddess, who became known as a Knidische Aphrodite . This marked the beginning of a new tradition for female nudity in art. Similar to the statues of Greek male athletes, the Knidische Aphrodite showed idealized proportions, which were derived from mathematical conditions.

Furthermore, her pose, in which she tended to the side and covered her body with one hand, conveyed the impression that the goddess experienced something unexpected while bathing. This gave her naked body a narrative and erotic dimension . It is possible that the attitude of your hands should express a feeling of modesty or symbolize the desire to protect the viewer from taking a look at your divinity.

Although the statue of Knidos has not been preserved, its influence is shown in the numerous reproductions and variations that were created by various artists during the Hellenistic and Roman era. These representations of Venus can be found not only in temples, but also in open -air sanctuary.

The red Kylix des Onesimos

The Attic Kylix, which to Onesimos (500–480 BC), is an example of these early approaches of the female act in painting . In this piece there is a lady who plays naked and lying down Kottabos. Kottabos was a popular activity during the festival of the male symposium. In fact, the young lady, who holds the handle of a deep cup (Skyphos) on her index finger, tries to throw food leftovers from the bottom of the vessel to a long -distance destination.

In this special context, however, it must be emphasized that the symposia were actually only reserved for male participants. As a result, naked women were therefore present to offer entertainment to the male participants. In fact, the nudity of the above -mentioned persons for the respected women of Athens would have been considered too daring; However, it may have been granted slaves that were hired as prostitutes, or "Etere" , wealthy women who enriched the evening of drinking male by singing, entertainment and the display of sexual beauty.

Roman antiquity - Eros greets Pompeii and Herculaneum

The Roman world caused a sensation in particular through the erotic works by Pompeii and Herculaneum when it comes to nude representations. A comprehensive series of archaeological research that started in the 18th century was discovered considerable erotic art from these two ancient cities.

This initiative revealed that the places mentioned were rich in erotic works of art that were presented both in the form of sculptures and in wall paintings. The characteristics of the topics indicate that the Roman customs were more revealing than in most of us known to us. However, it should be emphasized that many of the only erotic representations for us could actually be symbols of fertility of nature in the broadest sense as well as happiness and prosperity.

"Venus in a shell" , a fresco from Pompeii, which shows the Roman fertility and love goddess, was discovered between 1933 and 1935. The walls of the room were decorated in the IV. Pompejan style. Compared to the prevailing eroticism in the ancient Roman city, Venus's fresco appears relatively subtle in a shell. Incidentally, the house bears the name of this most famous fresco. To be more precise, the naked Venus is only in a shell and is accompanied by an amor and a child at birth, which most likely represents the young Mars.

Middle Ages - Eva and sin

With the rise of Christian culture in the Middle Ages, the body became the holy temple of the soul , which had to be protected from meat -like desires that God saw as terrible sins. Despite these ideas, the truck remained, so much that the devil and the lust in the sensuality of the female body derived from Eva were inextricably linked.

That is why medieval art shows the mother of mankind in its innocent and youthful nudity, already capable of taking the apple of sin.
In the Middle Ages, the church used the act to emphasize human fragility and to "teach the ignorant religion" . The church ordered frescoes, sculptures and paintings for churches and manuscripts that transported the church teaching and moral ideas exactly.

Art was mostly religious and nudity was evil. It revealed that people are mortal and imperfect. Nach paintings were shown for iconography. Naked characters can be seen on the church's interior decor, colorful glass windows (from the High Middle Ages) or the tympana of churches, which often refer to the fall or the underworld. Adam and Eva symbolize sin and nudity. They are mostly shown with snakes or plants that hide their genitals.

Adams and Evas , by Masolino (approx. 1424-1425)

A characteristic work of art of this period is located in the Brancacci chapel of the Santa Maria del Carmine church in Florence. This piece is called "Adam's temptation" or "original sin" and was created by Masolino between 1424 and 1425.

The painting is the well -known event from the Old Testament, especially the moment when the snake from the book of Genesis tries to persuade Adam and Eva to violate the rules. This episode, which is located in the late Gothic style, is characterized by the light, which gently and envelops the figures, as if they are radiating a diffuse shine.

Furthermore, the fact that the background is black contributes to the sensual appearance of the bare bodies of the two sinners.

Expulsion of the ancestors from Eden , by Masaccio (1424-1425)

Masaccios paintings, which represents the expulsion of the ancestors from Eden, is located in the same chapel as Masolino's work. At the moment of their disobedient towards the laws of God and their subsequent consumption of the fruit of knowledge, Adam and Eva are captured as a naked woman and naked man. In fact, they are represented as if they were exposed and powerless as they are removed from paradise. In fact, however, it is crucial to emphasize the fact that Adam and Eva have already entered paradise, according to the report in the Bible.

This means that we are in the transition between the High Middle Ages and Eturn Renaissance. In the second part, we examine the further dealings with naked femininity in the course of the Art Periods And Movements Renaissance, mannerism, baroque and classicism to modern times to classical modern and contemporary art.