[description: b/w portrait of a statuesque, nude figure standing on a pedestal]
Because the human body is a work of art.
Because the human body is a work of art.
Visit any community of amateur artists, and eventually you will encounter a heated debate about the merit of nudity in art. And while its detractors are motivated by the existence of a thriving modern pornography industry, they seem to have forgotten that nudity has been a staple of fine art going back to the ancients. Because we are sexual organisms, we cannot help reading the potential for erotic attraction into the human form, especially unclothed (which is one of the reasons so many people misinterpret nudism as a sexual lifestyle). But should this prevent us from appreciating the human body as an amazing machine, and a true work of art?
To be fair, there is no intrinsic relationship between nudism and fine art, but who is in a better position to admire art that depicts the human body than those devoid of hangups about it? I daresay you'd be more likely to find nude paintings, photo prints, and sculptures decorating the homes and gardens of nudists than you would textiles. And it is not at all uncommon for nudists, or nudists-in-training (who are in the process of discovering their interest in nudism), to volunteer to model for nude life drawing sessions.
