What's the big deal, you may be asking yourself. I was having a conversation with someone (an XX in genetic terms) recently and this person was describing a dinner engagement at a restaurant that I have been to before, but the person never had. Anyway, there is some wall decor that displays a nude in the female form (MUCH more detailed than the Picasso image I used for this post). This person lowered her voice when describing this to me like this, "...and on the wall above the bar was a naked women.." Her voice deliberately lowered when she said 'naked' and I replied with, "Uh...ok." She said, "Can you believe that?" And I said, "What's the big deal?" It's not like she was in a seedy adult bookstore or some nonsense like that. CONTEXT-CONTEXT-CONTEXT. I don't think her reaction would have been the same had she been walking through the halls of the DIA where there resides numerous nude paintings and sculptures. I'm not sure about what anyone else thinks, but I happen to appreciate the human body and find no problem with a nude painting or statue in a restaurant, city street or obviously an art museum. It's a celebration of the human form. We're not talking Cheetahs TaTa Bar or something like that. I know this is a facet of American culture where there is an aversion to the celebration of the body. I’m not saying I’m for nudist colonies and porn ads on TV, but I am saying that something like a nude body is to be appreciated and seen as homage to such a beautiful creation. I love the way in which the human form is celebrated in Puerto Rico, throughout the Carribean and in many parts of Europe. There is a much more comfortable acceptance.
There certainly is a difference between art and porn and my argument is that art taken out of context (from a museum to a restaurant or a statute on a city street) scares some people because there is just an overall uncomfortable-ness about talking about naked bodies outside of an object of sexual fulfillment and desire. I recommend everyone take a Human Sexuality class and then an Art History class and learn to appreciate the human form and stop being so prudish...
9.26.2006
Nude/Naked/Nekked
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8 comments:
i'll never have to be reminded of the beauty of the female body.
-mike
-d'oh!
INFORMATION: NUDE PAINTINGS BY SWEDISH ARTIST ULF MALMGREN
The nude paintings and other oil paintings by Ulf Malmgren can be seen at the following address:
http://www.malmgrenpaintings.se/index.html
The possibility of showing most of these pictures publicly in Sweden is small or non-existent. See text on Main page.
The last one dates from 1995. There will be no more. They represent the major part of the artist´s thus forever limited output. See http://www.malmgrenpaintings.se/Further_nude_paintings_frameset.htm
If, by chance, the pictures appear to be too light, too dark, or lustreless, due to individual renderingg by different web browsers and different settings of the screen, you could in most cases easily and rapidly amend this by changing the brightness and contrast of your screen.
and what, exactly, is wrong with nude beaches and porn on TV? :P
Maybe you should send GR or WK to the DIA once.
Hey, have you noticed? I think you've been spending a little too much time with me and are becoming..[gasp] an art snob! [/gasp] :P
Thank you for the obvious captain. :p
Anon,
Gracias.
Shqipo,
Get help..now! :p I am trying to resist your bourgeoisie influence...
I'm a proud proletariat
Well, you are living in a country full of prudes that wanted a teacher for taking his students to a museum and one woman freaked out because her kid saw a nude statue. She complained and they put the teacher on paid leave. People have such an aversion to the human form is it any wonder that so many people have sexual dusfunctions? So many women are ashamed of their body that they can't reach orgasm? I have never understood this idea that the human body is a bad thing! I mean, you cant see persons nekkid body on TV, but you can see some guy get a stilleto heel shoved into his jugular. Violence is A-OK but a nipple!! Someone once said this, and I agree with them, "I would rather have my kids watch two people making love then watch two people trying to kill eachother." That is all.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! WHO THE HELL IS MICHELANGELO!!!!!!! WHAT IS THAT THING ON THAT FAMOUS STATUE HE SCULPTED!!!! IS THAT A PENIS??? NOOOOO!!!! OH SNAP!!!! LOOK AT VENUS DE MILO!!!! HER TITS ARE OUT!!!!!! WHAT???? NO ARMS??? WHO CARES, PUT A SHIRT ON HER ANYWAY!!!!! AHHHHHHH NUDITY WILL CORRUPT MY MIND!!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
D & Dave,
I concur.
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