Human body
Save your search and find it in your favorites
Saved search
Your search is accessible from the favorites tab > My favorite searches
Unsaved search
A problem occurred
H2 Eau
Marie-Madeleine Vitrolles
Sculpture - 117 x 20 x 20 cm Sculpture - 46.1 x 7.9 x 7.9 inch
€2,500
NUDE ONLY FOR YOU 2
Oswin Gesselli
Painting - 100 x 100 x 4 cm Painting - 39.4 x 39.4 x 1.6 inch
€2,950
Good company
Jessica Renault jrbrush
Painting - 20.3 x 30.5 x 0.3 cm Painting - 8 x 12 x 0.1 inch
€800
La danseuse
Merry Kerpitchian (Merry K)
Sculpture - 15 x 31 x 11 cm Sculpture - 5.9 x 12.2 x 4.3 inch
€3,750
Tokyo 99, YUKI
André Ferrand
Fine Art Drawings - 100 x 65 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 39.4 x 25.6 x 0.4 inch
€900
Confident stance
Kathleen Ney
Fine Art Drawings - 60.5 x 45.2 x 0.3 cm Fine Art Drawings - 23.8 x 17.8 x 0.1 inch
€532
Trois mouvements d’Ailine III
Yiyan Zhou
Sculpture - 18 x 13 x 8 cm Sculpture - 7.1 x 5.1 x 3.1 inch
€2,200
Trois mouvements d’Ailine II
Yiyan Zhou
Sculpture - 21 x 14 x 9 cm Sculpture - 8.3 x 5.5 x 3.5 inch
€2,200
Stop and focus
Emmanuel Okoro
Sculpture - 95 x 110 x 20 cm Sculpture - 37.4 x 43.3 x 7.9 inch
€5,102
Irida XIII
Laurence Winram
Photography - 84.1 x 59.4 x 0.2 cm Photography - 33.1 x 23.4 x 0.1 inch
€583
Roarie XXVI
Laurence Winram
Photography - 84.1 x 59.4 x 0.2 cm Photography - 33.1 x 23.4 x 0.1 inch
€583
Hope, Melancholy serie
Olha Vlasova
Painting - 60 x 40 x 1.5 cm Painting - 23.6 x 15.7 x 0.6 inch
€700
Marianne à la Rose 1/8
Marcos Rodrigo
Sculpture - 67.5 x 29 x 19 cm Sculpture - 26.6 x 11.4 x 7.5 inch
€2,650
Les colonnes n°2
Manon Deck-Sablon
Photography - 60 x 40 x 0.1 cm Photography - 23.6 x 15.7 x 0 inch
€500
Variations sur béton n°1
Manon Deck-Sablon
Photography - 60 x 40 x 0.1 cm Photography - 23.6 x 15.7 x 0 inch
€500
Relaxing nude figure (Diptych)
Carmen Tyrrell
Painting - 39.9 x 102.1 x 1.5 cm Painting - 15.7 x 40.2 x 0.6 inch
€696
Erotic female nude 2
Carmen Tyrrell
Painting - 52.1 x 89.9 x 0.3 cm Painting - 20.5 x 35.4 x 0.1 inch
€785
Erotic female nude 3
Carmen Tyrrell
Painting - 52.1 x 89.9 x 0.3 cm Painting - 20.5 x 35.4 x 0.1 inch
€785
Lovers - Pure love 4
Carmen Tyrrell
Painting - 63 x 51.1 x 0.3 cm Painting - 24.8 x 20.1 x 0.1 inch
€696
La femme qui danse
Sylvie Nadeau
Painting - 116 x 95 x 2 cm Painting - 45.7 x 37.4 x 0.8 inch
€1,475
Restive nude
Nicholas Robertson
Painting - 80 x 54.1 x 0.5 cm Painting - 31.5 x 21.3 x 0.2 inch
€607
Dextrous nude
Nicholas Robertson
Painting - 80 x 54.1 x 0.5 cm Painting - 31.5 x 21.3 x 0.2 inch
€584
Reclining nude
Nicholas Robertson
Painting - 74.9 x 55.1 x 0.5 cm Painting - 29.5 x 21.7 x 0.2 inch
€627
The Lebanese Mona Lisa
Dzovig Arnelian
Painting - 100 x 75 x 0.5 cm Painting - 39.4 x 29.5 x 0.2 inch
€658
Untitled 1
Boshra Mustafa
Fine Art Drawings - 26 x 26 x 1.5 cm Fine Art Drawings - 10.2 x 10.2 x 0.6 inch
€967
L'empire des femmes
Françoise Benomar
Photography - 40 x 60 cm Photography - 15.7 x 23.6 inch
€1,500
Entre deux temps d'or
Françoise Benomar
Photography - 40 x 60 cm Photography - 15.7 x 23.6 inch
€1,500
Serie Las Piadosas
Enriqueta Aguiló
Painting - 90 x 110 x 2 cm Painting - 35.4 x 43.3 x 0.8 inch
€4,420
Yellow Invitation
Anastasia Kurakina
Fine Art Drawings - 18.5 x 18 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 7.3 x 7.1 x 0 inch
€680
Nude of a Woman
Anastasia Kurakina
Fine Art Drawings - 25 x 17 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 9.8 x 6.7 x 0 inch
€680
Night & Day
Anastasia Kurakina
Fine Art Drawings - 14 x 19 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 5.5 x 7.5 x 0 inch
€680
Nude of Woman
Anastasia Kurakina
Fine Art Drawings - 24 x 24.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 9.4 x 9.6 x 0 inch
€680
Morning Lines
Anastasia Kurakina
Fine Art Drawings - 17 x 15 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 6.7 x 5.9 x 0 inch
€680
Beyond What You Desire
Anastasia Kurakina
Painting - 13 x 20 x 0.1 cm Painting - 5.1 x 7.9 x 0 inch
€680
Woman in Orange
Anastasia Kurakina
Painting - 60 x 55 x 1 cm Painting - 23.6 x 21.7 x 0.4 inch
€1,100
Schiele 1984 tribute 3
Simão Da Silva
Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 30 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 11.8 inch
€1,650
NUDE Lovers 4
Simão Da Silva
Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 30 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 11.8 inch
€1,750
Arco. From the series Espiral
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 76.2 x 50.8 x 0.3 cm Photography - 30 x 20 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Folding man Two: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Folding man One: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Man Curve Four: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Man Curve One: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Man Back One: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Man Curve Four: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Man Curve Three: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Man Curve Two: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Man Curve One: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Man against wall Two: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Man against wall One: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Folding man Two: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Folding man One: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Men Legs One: From Motion Series
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Man Back One, Medium
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Phillip, Nine, Medium
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Phillip, Eight, Medium
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Phillip, Seven, Medium
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Phillip, Six, Medium
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Phillip, Five, Medium
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Phillip, Four, Medium
Ricky Cohete
Photography - 91.4 x 61 x 0.3 cm Photography - 36 x 24 x 0.1 inch
€2,149
Human body
'I wanted to conquer the world. But I also desperately wanted to understand human nature, and to know what was inside our bodies. To do this, I have spent whole night dissecting bodies, against the direct orders of the Pope. Nothing disgusts me. What I am looking for, truly, in all of my work and particularly in my painting, what I have looked for all my life, is to understand the mystery that is human nature' – from the notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci in the 16th century.
At the time of writing these notes, da Vinci had already made greater understanding of the human body the primary objective of his investigations. Dissection and study were key to his development of a holistic knowledge of anatomy, which da Vinci believed was vital to the perfect rendering of the nude figures which he painted and drew.
Little by little, the traditional image of the human figure was uprooted and in its place new ways of interpreting the body developed. Contemporary artists relentlessly questioned the traditional codes of figure drawing, liberally reworking the representation of the body to create a new image that was dislocated, geometric, deformed and disfigured.
The body as an artistic subject is at once desired, fantasised, dreamt, transformed, deformed. For painters, photographers and sculptors alike the body represents a rite of passage in their artistic development. Many people say that they most appreciate the talents of an artists by way of their control over the complexity of the figure. For example, it's clear even in Matisse's later, more abstract collages that he had perfectly mastered the human form.
Representation of the body is fundamental to Western art: first and foremost because it suggests a representation of the self, and therefore affirms the artist's own existence and coexistence with the environment that surrounds them. At the beginning of art history, the only bodies represented were the gods, supernatural beings, and spirits who had taken on human form. The body, nude or clothed, is at once one of the most widely depicted and most deeply polemical subjects in Western art (think of the scandals provoked by Courbet's 'Origins of the World', or Renoir's 'Picnic on the Grass').
The body has always been the primary subject of an array of themes, and its history is rich and ancient. Initially, depiction of the body was closely linked to religion, where the Word became flesh in Genesis, but later in more secular times the arousal of the artist when faced with the body made for an equally popular theme. Latterly the notion of the body as an object of beauty was subverted by Cubism until depictions of bodies no longer bore any resemblance to reality or made any pretence of respecting the rules of proportion.
Finally, in modern art the body has taken on an abstract shape within space, becoming one with the environment. In some instances, the body has become the artist's own support, as with Klein's models. The body as an abstract concept is tangible in many different manifestations in art, even in pieces as unassuming as some of Rothko's paintings. It remains the subject of inexhaustible inspiration and eternal debate.