The Nude in Art [2 Disc Set] (2005)

If there is one genre of art that seems to have played a greater role than any other, it is the nude. For at least 30,000 years, humans have represented the naked form in a variety of ways. From the ideal to the real, the Romantic to the Surrealist, there has been almost no end of works devoted to the unclothed human body. This four part series will examine those artworks, the societies that produced them and the artists that made them. The DVD presentation enhances the stunning visual quality of these classic masterpieces.

The Nude in Art - Episode 1: The Classical

The Classical: Examines art such as the Venus of Willendorf and the Venus de Milo. Explores through images such as these just what can be learned about why Man first illustrated the naked body in these specific ways.





The Nude in Art - Episode 2: The Renaissance

A lively visual journey illustrating how the Christian idea of nudity -associated with sin - was replaced with the idea of nudity symbolizing beauty and sensuality. Features significant works of Botticelli, Michelango and Giotto.
In the second episode of The Nude in Art we look at the role that the nude played in the Renaissance. Tim Marlow travels to England, France and Italy as part of 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. Some of the art that Tim visits include Botticelli's Birth of Venus, Michelangelo's David and Giotto's The Last Judgement.





The Nude in Art - Episode 3: The Enlightenment

The naked form took on many different uses. For some, it represented virtue, for others, vice. It was used to shock, to coerce, to titillate, to impress, and to instruct.
The Enlightenment, Tim Marlow examines works of art such as Rembrandt’s The Anatomy Lesson, Ingres’s Turkish Bath, and Rodin’s The Age of Bronze. All illustrate the many different uses the naked form was now having. For some, it represented virtue, for others vice. It was used to shock, to coerce, to titillate, to impress and to instruct.



The Nude in Art - Episode 4: The Modern

In the last episode we deal with The Modern period of art. Manet’s Olympia, Picasso’s Les Demoiselles D’Avignon and Bacon’s Triptych are among those artworks used to illustrate how the 20th century changed everything. Emotional truth overcame physical realism. With photography and film, nothing seemed beyond the artists’ interest or capabilities. But, as the series concludes, is our interpretation of the nude really that much different to our ancestors’ 30,000 years ago?