Whether depicted as a divine goddess or a courtesan, a nude woman has been a provocative icon in art history. Yet, the reasons behind this phenomenon are complex and entangled with women’s lives.
For example, studies suggest that women might send nudes in order to satisfy a variety of different motivations, including Machiavellianism and psychopathy.
History
Since ancient times, the naked body has fascinated artists and triggered controversy. Sculptors and painters competed to celebrate it, often with erotic, mythological or allegorical references. However, women, who enjoyed fewer rights than men in most societies of the past, were rarely released from this type of representation. It seems that it was only when women gained more political rights, that they were finally freed from a representation mainly linked to sexuality.
Artistic training included an emphasis on realistic observation of the human body. For this reason, a number of artists studied anatomy through dissection. This allowed them to master the complexities of the human skeleton and understand the placement and character of muscle. For many Renaissance artists, nudes were essential for this approach.
A woman’s nakedness is a wonderful source of inspiration for an artist because it evokes desires, reverie and the forbidden. In painting, it is also a canvas for subtle symbolism and hidden messages. Let’s explore the meaning of some nude paintings throughout history to better understand these complex themes.
For example, a painting by Titian from the 15th century is famous for its depiction of Venus, a goddess of love and beauty. In this piece, the Venetian painter reveals to his audience that he is aware of the desire of male spectators to see women in their natural state. Unlike other artists of his time, he does not try to conceal the erotic nature of his subject.
Another interesting painting is the portrait of Agnes Sorel by the Rococo artist Antoinette Louise Vigee Le Brun. This painting is a tribute to the mistress of King Charles VII of France, who was an extraordinary beauty and intellectual. The portrait shows her bare breasts and her delicate, sensual figure. However, despite the erotic dimension of this work, its purpose is not to provoke voyeurism but rather to illustrate an aspect of courtly life.
During the 19th century, Edouard Manet pushed the boundaries of academic painting with his two works Olympia and Dejeuner sur l’herbe. These paintings show a realistic depiction of female nudity and challenge the artistic rules of his time. It is important to remember that, at this time, depicting a nude woman was considered scandalous unless she was an ancient goddess or nymph.
Motivations
There’s no doubt that nude photos of women are powerful, especially when they elicit positive responses in the brain. In fact, studies have shown that when a person looks at erotic images, the ventral striatum—a part of the brain associated with reward processing—lights up. This suggests that people who look at nude photos of women are naturally stimulated and may feel compelled to seek out similar images in order to recreate that good feeling.
When a friend, crush or loved one sends you a nude photo, how do you react? Maybe you smirk, giggle or respond with a flirty joke. If you’re lucky, your response will trigger a surge of dopamine, which makes you feel happy and satiated. This dopamine response also makes you want to keep looking at the image, so it’s important not to overdo it.
In a recent study, Van Ouytsel and colleagues asked 207 adolescents (all female) whether they had ever sent a nude pic to someone else, as well as their motivation for doing so. They found that most teens endorsed negative motives for sending nude pics, such as “turning on” the recipient or to “show off.” However, they also found that many teens had positive motivations for sending nude pics, such as sexual exploration, felt cute or foreplay. The researchers concluded that the frequency of these positive motives was much higher than those for sex or violence perpetration, drug/alcohol use and proving something.
Women in art have historically been depicted as beautiful, idealized figures that aspire to ideal beauty standards. This reflects the cultural context in which they were created, as well as societal values. In ancient Greece, for example, the perfect woman was characterized by soft forms, round buttocks and long hair with waves. The most famous depiction of this model is Praxiteles’ Aphrodite cnidia.
The Renaissance brought a more modern approach to the human body, with artists like Titian using the nude female as a symbol of power and self-assertion. In his work La Maja desnuda, he painted a naked woman with a confident expression and no apparent shame or embarrassment, challenging the academic convention of presenting the nude female as a mythological goddess or nymph.
Sexuality
Researchers have found that while male sexual responses to pictures of nude female bodies tend to be fairly predictable, females are not as much turned on by erotic content. Instead, women respond to a variety of things, including the shape of a person’s body, facial expressions, and posture. One study created a lot of buzz when it showed men and women nude images of both male and female bodies, as well as homosexual and heterosexual sex, and the sexually exhilarating behaviors of bonobos (a particularly frisky species of ape). The researchers found that while men were strongly aroused by all these stimuli, only about a quarter of the women in the study felt even slightly stimulated.
In a similar vein, some artists have used the nude as a way to question gendered power dynamics. Feminist artist Carolee Schneemann, for example, posed in a nude self-portrait near railroad tracks, calling to mind the railroad stereo photographs that pioneer image-makers made in an attempt to promote American development and expansion. Her emaciated figure, sickly colors and piercing gaze create a figure of solitude and death that subjugates the viewer.
Other artists, like Edouard Manet and Francisco de Goya, rejected academic norms in their depiction of the female nude. While many academic paintings presented nudes as mythological goddesses or nymphs, Manet wanted to show the reality of his time and society. The fact that the subject, Olympia, is a prostitute makes this painting all the more scandalous at its release in 1863.
In recent times, female artists have used the nude to resist culturally entrenched gendered expectations. A poster campaign by the Guerrilla Girls, for example, targeted the Metropolitan Museum of Art and its over-representation of male-generated nude artworks.
In addition, some women have begun to share their own nude photos on the internet. These nude selfies are often leaked by individuals who wish to challenge societal perceptions of the female body and, in some cases, reclaim the right to choose how their bodies are represented. However, these actions are not without repercussions. Research has shown that when a person’s nude picture is leaked by another individual, it’s highly likely the subject will experience social disapproval and/or emotional distress.
Body image
Women’s bodies are viewed in much different ways than men’s, and they often suffer from an unhealthy body image. Body image, defined as a person’s thoughts, feelings and perceptions about their own body, can affect the way they feel about themselves and the world around them. The concept has become a field of study within several disciplines, including neuroscience, psychology, medicine, psychiatry, psychoanalysis, philosophy, and cultural and feminist studies.
Artists have been representing the female nude for centuries. Depending on the era and painting, it can symbolize the virginity of Eve or the beauty of an ancient goddess or the libertine sexuality of the 18th century. The female nude is an icon of feminism and can provoke intense emotions, but it can also be used as a tool for self-love or rebellion against oppressive gender norms.
Many artists have used the female nude and the landscape to reclaim artistic autonomy from male patronage and the voyeuristic gaze of the public. The work of feminist art pioneers like Anne Brigman and Carolee Schneemann challenged gendered power relations, while recognizing human resilience and strength.
In the 1970s, Schneemann took a nude self-portrait on the summit of the transcontinental railroad tracks in Donner Pass. In her reclining pose, she echoes the railroad stereo photographs of American pioneer image-makers and challenges gendered views about the role of the male photographer.
When it comes to photographing the body, it’s important for women to know what they are getting into before agreeing to have their photos taken. Especially with the prevalence of online leaks, it’s imperative that women understand how their bodies will be perceived before they sign off on it. For instance, one listicle on Bolde cautions female nude-senders that it’s likely that their “goodies” will be seen by other people in addition to the original recipient.
For Krause, her project is about giving women the sense of body ownership that’s often taken away from them. She hopes to eventually expand the project so that it includes all types of bodies, a goal that she says is important for an accurate representation of what society sees as beautiful.