London based, all male group Nude for Thought present re: Defining beauty. Comprising of mixed media work debating concepts of male beauty, this show responds to the recent exhibition at the British Museum, Defining Beauty.
The female nude and the female muse have been subjects of discussion for years. Now men are opening the debate in an attempt to redefine how they too are perceived.
Facets of Man, oil on canvas, by Richard Dickenson
The artists in this contemporary exhibition at the Leyden Gallery, individually respond to the male body and traditional idealised forms of beauty. You can see the influence of life drawing classes though the representations of the male body. Most of the images presented depict completely naked men, which is still unusual in galleries and exhibition spaces.
Like much art which gets slammed for being overtly sexual, political or grotesque it is usually because we are not used to having to face and question such challenging issues: we don’t want to because it makes us uncomfortable on many levels. Yet, some things which make us squirm need to be prised open and delved into. This group successfully manages to avoid sensationalising while maintaining their focus.
Only on for a brief period, re: Defining beauty ran from 3rd – 7th November 2015 with participatory life drawing sessions and an open discussion on the male nude in contemporary art.
All events were held at the Leyden Gallery, E1.
For more information visit: www.nudeforthought.com
By Helen Shewry
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