March 28, 2024

 

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By RACHEL ROY

People get excited about things “naughty” (just look at the popularity of 50 Shades of Grey), but nudity makes them feel nervous and embarrassed. Why is this?

THEMUSEUM is hoping their new exhibit, Getting Naked, will change that.

The Canadian Council Art Bank has 17,000 works of art some of which are nudes. These pieces have never been seen by the public due to their brashness. However, that all changed on March 7, when Getting Naked opened at THEMUSEUM.

This exhibit also features The Naked Dialogues, which includes a life drawing workshop, speakers and documentaries all revolving around being naked.

In a press release, David Markskell, CEO of THEMUSEUM, said, “We’re very excited to launch a new dialogue series in conjunction with the Getting Naked exhibition.”

The Naked Dialogues will run until May. Topics include the history of nudity and nakedness, nudity and nakedness in the media, public versus private opinions and even nakedness in food.

In addition, THEMUSEUM will host a unique event called Naked in the Gallery where visitors will be able to observe and view the gallery while they themselves are naked.

Markskell said, “This is a rare opportunity to not only see these incredible works of art but also have a conversation about why Canadian culture shies away from nudity.”

Many of the pieces at THEMUSEUM were created by recognizable Canadian icons who are known for their other works, but their nude creations were hidden from the public.

“For a number of reasons the small collection of nudes does not get rented out to boardrooms or office spaces,” said Victoria Henry, Canadian Art Bank director, in a press release. “My goal was to see the works displayed, but no one has had the courage to show the works until David Markskell of the THEMUSEUM enthusiastically agreed.”

Henry said, “I hope that they will see how beautiful these works are and I’m sure that will happen. You really don’t look at these like ‘that’s a nude’ first, you look at them in terms of the skill and then you realize that there is nudity in it.”

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