BellaOnline Forums Family Moms Kids & Nude Art

I got an art magazine recently that had all sorts of art supplies. One was for a book that described how to draw the human body and it was "not for minors" because it shows some naked people when describing how human bodies can be drawn.

It made me think - is it a bit sad when we are saying nobody under 18 is allowed to view a nude human body, because this is somehow "bad" for them? Think of all the great works of art that show a human body as a form of elegance ... but we can't show these to people under 18 because they can't handle the thought of a person without clothes?

I FEEL THIS IS NOT SAD, THAT CHILDREN UNDER 18 CANNOT VEIW NUDE ART. BECAUSE OUR CHILDREN TODAY ARE SO LOADED DOWN WITH NUDITY ON TELEVISION, THAT IF SOME WOULD SEE NUDE ART, THEY COULD'NT HELP TO THINK ABOUT SOMETHING SEXUAL. BECAUSE OF WHAT NUDITY SYMBOLIZE IN THIS WORLD, WHICH IS NOT PURE AND INNOCENCE BUT OF LUST AND PLEASURE.

Wow, SADA, I couldn't disagree more. I think if you help teach kids at a young age to have a healthy attitude about the human body, then seeing nude art or nudity on television becomes a non-issue. Kids are a lot smarter than we give them credit for.

I agree with you that by teaching our kids that the naked body is a beautiful, natural thing, it becomes a non-issue. When my kids were young, nudity was not something that was looked upon as a bad thing. If my husband or I were getting dressed, and the kids walked in on us, so be it. I didn't parade around with everything hanging out, but I didn't hide my nudity if they happened to see me.

Now that my oldest is a teenager, it's a little different. He's a lot more aware/concerned about privacy issues, so there's no running-to-the-laundry-room w/o any shirt on! But, since we were always so "this is how it is" with him, he's not embarassed by it, nor is it a big issue.

Naked bodies are just a way of life. It's the way we came into the world. Nothing to be ashamed of! <img src="/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

If kids are shown various things when they are younger they will not be as influenced later. Talking to our kids when their small, will make it easier for them to come and talk to us about anything. My kids are not at all embarrassed, about nudity and speak freely about the human body.
Dawn <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I have to agree. I have a 20 year old and a 6 year old. When the older one became sexually active he did talk to me about it. I think it is part of my job as a parent to make my kids feel like they can ask me anything.

I do think that's important - a child that knows that a human body is OK to talk about might be much more open to talk about important questions later on, and also to speak up if someone starts to touch him/her inappropriately. If instead they're taught a nude body is 'bad' and shouldn't be talked about, I really think that can cause a lot of problems, because then even if it's something they SHOULD talk about, they won't ...

And I agree completely that a kid that is always told nudity is bad and evil will then go diving right towards it when they hit puberty, to see what it's all about. It's a natural teenage reaction - "I can't do it? I want to try it!" They *will* equate nudity with sex with lust with bad because it's what they were taught. Even when it's a beautiful artwork at a museum.

But a child that is brought up with nudity as a normal fact of life won't have those same connotations, the automatic nude = sex = evil.

It seems like such a shame to warp a young mind into thinking any naked body is innately bad ... that sort of thinking leads to women in Afghanistan wearing full-body wraps lest someone glimpse their "evil flesh".

I think that this is more of an issue than we think. If we look at our society today, it is more sexually driven than spiritually. This whole idea that we should allow our kids to look at nudity, or that it's nothing wrong with is bizarre. What is the difference in allowing our children to view nude art as opposed to a filthy magazine at the local convenience store. Are we setting up our children in establishing a low set of morals and encouraging it at the same time? Yes children should know about their body, but at the same time teach them the Godly way to view it. By allowing children to see things that is for adults can have them to mature too soon and lose out on their innoncence too early.

I can already tell that we're going to have to end up agreeing to disagree on this one ... <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

True, sexuality is exploited in all aspects of our society. Whether it's sexual innuendo, bikini bombshells in advertising, or whatever, it's there, and it's probably not the healthiest way to introduce your children to sex and the human body.

BUT, nude art can hardly be equated to skin mags at the convenience store. I won't deny anyone's right to prevent their own children from looking at either, but as to the original topic, labeling an art book as not suitable for minors is going a bit too far.

Context is everything. The painting of nudes is essential to teaching art students how to paint the clothed human body. Without an understanding of anatomy, it would be difficult for any artist to paint accurate human forms -- they need to understand how the muscles and the shape of the human body will look under clothes. This is a far cry from magazines that are largely sold with the explicit purpose of sexually exciting the viewer.

I think there is a difference between preserving innocence vs. preserving ignorance. Teaching kids that the human body is not always about sex and lust would go a lot farther than hiding it from them. That's not say that you should bombard kids with nudity, but I don't think you should skip out on going to an art museum because there might be nude paintings or drawings there.

The way I was brought up about nudity was that is was not a bad thing because it is natural, but its not like we all walked around naked either. But as an 18yr old male, I think that revealing clothes or walking in on someone nude is a little too much for a family because of the hormones. But the openness should still be there, because it is not like anybody is getting hurt, and it is not like we havent been seen nude before, or seen others nude before.