The Nude in Art With Tim Marlow

Tim Marlow’s main focus is the ancient classical world. He explores how and why the naked body was first depicted and goes on to show how the ‘Venus de Milo’ and the ‘Venus of Willendorf’ fit into the context of social and art history.

Marlow travels to England, France and Italy on a lively, visual journey illustrating how the Christian idea of nudity associated with sin was replaced with ideas of nudity being associated with beauty and sensuality. Included are Botticelli’s ‘Birth of Venus’, Michelangelo’s ‘David’ and Giotto’s ‘The Last Judgement’.

Tim Marlow looks at how the image of a naked body was used for a variety of purposes during this period – to shock, to coerce, to titillate, to impress and to instruct. Examples are Rembrandt’s ‘The Anatomy Lesson’, Ingres’ ‘The Turkish Bath’ and Rodin’s ‘The Age of Bronze’.

Marlow explores examples of the nude in the Modern period: Manet’s ‘Olympia’, Picasso’s ‘Les Demoiselles D’Avignon’ and Bacon’s ‘Triptych’. Marlow explains how the 20th century changed perspective on the nude in art as emotional truth overcame physical realism. With the advent of photography and film, nothing seemed beyond the artists’ interest or capabilities.