Peek a Boo

The Nude

Yes you caught us staring at you Grace Jones

I’m about to embark on my first nude painting. A friend has asked me to capture her body before she ages another year and I’m very flattered. I immediately thought of Dali’s nude paintings and Grace Jones because my mate has an eccentric personality, and then Freud’s uncompromising brush strokes flashed in my mind, so what is the best way to paint a nude?

Stunning Dali painting with an equally stunning title 'Dream caused by Flight of a Bee around a Pomegrant' 

We all have an idea of what we look like naked, but how is our birthday suit viewed by others and should we care? What does the naked rambler think as he avoids prickly bushes and tour groups while strolling through the English countryside? Can any of us look as iconic as Demi Moore in both her pregnant and painted suit for Vanity Fair magazine, or as poised as Josephine Baker?

Josephine looking demure

The nude painting has always fascinated me. I acknowledge that the idea of capturing someone without the identity of their clothes is a purest ideal in a physical world where hairstyles, grooming, tattoos and scars give a nod to a lifestyle and naked character.

Annabel joins Rattler in the nude

I’m keen for the image not to be exclusively associated with sexual identity, there is no point in denying that our aesthetics are judged and that a naked body can arouse and tug at our carnal desires. When viewing a contemporary naked portrait, I can spot the visitors who shuffle along uneasily in case others suspect their viewing affects another sensory organ.

Wen Wu pays feminine attention to those shoes

The subject’s pose and prop should be considered. I am drawn to the subtle use of shoes in Wen’s portrait title Magnolias and equally drawn to the lazy pose in Edward Weston’s Nude on Sand because who doesn’t want to lie in the sun and feel the heat on their body without worrying about tan lines and wondering eyes.

Edward Weston's 'Nude on Sand' has a timeless appeal

This year’s winner of the BP Portrait Prize is a beautiful example of balancing truth with dignity, if I can capture just a fraction of that viewing experience, I’ll have done my job.

1st prize for Aleah Chapin