Rembrandt’s Danaë, 1636 Danaë by Rembrandt van Rijn, 1636, via The State Hermitage Museum, St. By placing the woman within an Oriental setting, Ingres was able to depict a European nude with frank eroticism that was made acceptable by the context seen in the painting.ģ. The subject matter of the painting is the odalisque – a concubine of a rich man in the East. The elongated features, like the long arms and back, reveal a mannerist influence, in an attempt of the painter to give a sense of grace and elegance. This we can see through the silk draperies, the peacock feather fan, the turban, the hookah pipe, the enormous pearls, and the cool palette tones. He changed the theme of the mythological nude to an imaginary oriental one. The odalisque functions as a French fantasy inspired by North Africa and the Middle East. Although Titian painted a nude woman in a classical setting, Ingres painted a woman in a lush Orientalist one. At first glance, it seems that he is following the tradition of the reclining nude, like Titian’s Venus of Urbino. What’s most important for Ingres is the sensuality of the figure, showing female nudity in art in a new way. The artwork itself is seen as a departure from Neoclassicism. Let’s see how Ingres showed female nudity in art! The painting was originally commissioned by Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples and sister of Napoleon, as a gift to her husband. Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres’s La Grande Odalisque, 1814 La Grande Odalisque by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, 1814, via Musée du Louvre, Paris The rose flowers in the hands and the myrtle in the window is an allegory of married life the dog, curled into her feet symbolizes fidelity, while the rounded feminine belly is the eternal symbol of childbirth and the continuation of life.Ģ. Many elements in this painting relate to nuptial imagery and decorations of bedrooms after weddings. Resembling the pose of Venus Pudica, she keeps the left hand covering her groin. Seems rather calm and confident in her nudity, as a symbol of both sexuality and innocence.

She is the perfect representation of the classic renaissance woman that symbolizes love, beauty, and fertility. The figure represents the Venus of marriage. This way he connects the idea of a divine woman with that of an ordinary woman. Titian places his Venus in an everyday setting in a splendid palatial interior. In this artwork, Titian, indeed, established new compositional rules for the female nude, revealed the role of sexuality in art, and promoted social and political messages. The Venetian master paints the female nude in a manner that recognizes the desires of the male beholder. What demonstrates this painting’s influence is its ability to inspire some of the greatest artists. In the period referred to as the High Renaissance, depicting a naked woman in a painting was very provocative unless she was an ancient goddess. The painting was commissioned by the Duke of Urbino, Guidobaldo Della Rovere, as a present for good luck for his bride. However, Titian chose to transfer his Venus into a scene of everyday life, creating a connection between the figure of a goddess with that of an everyday woman.

Venus of Urbino is one of Titian’s best-known paintings and a reference to the Sleeping Venus of Giorgione, which was created two decades earlier. Titian’s Venus of Urbino, 1538 Venus of Urbino by Titian, 1538, via Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence “As female nude, woman is body, is nature opposed to male culture which in turn, is represented by the very act of transforming nature, that is, the female model or motif, into the ordered forms and color of a cultural artifact, a work of art.”ġ. The artist could, therefore, use the nude form as a pretext to aspire to feminine beauty or reinforce dominant ideologies of modern society. The naked human body provided the key link between a set of ideas, beliefs, and values. Until the 19th century, it became a rule that the female nudes in painting should have a prototype. In ancient times, artists weren’t allowed to paint nudity in art, unless they were depicting mythical figures or supernatural beings. Female Nudity In Art Over Time The Artist’s Studio A real allegory summing up seven years of my artistic and moral life by Gustave Courbet,1854-55, via Musée d’Orsay, Paris

Divine feminine paintings