So i am a fine arts major transitioning to illustration major...and one of my favorite courses has been figure drawing. For those of you that arent aware of what this is...its basically drawing people. Nude, sometimes clothed. In my experience it has always been nude. I have a great appreciation for the human body, be it an 85 year old man, or a 22 year old woman...
After having a conversation with a coworker, i was shocked to know that he knew nothing of this sort of class. "So someone stands in front of a bunch of people naked, and gets drawn or painted"... "yup" i said, with a smug smile. I found his shock to be quite humorous.
Apparently this is frowned upon in Nigerian culture. We spent about 2 hours debating the right and wrong of it and in my opinion there is no wrong. He, however, thought firstly of arousal, and that the model is a whore in some ways...and of course none of us are above arousal. I know the first time i took figure drawing was the first time i had seen a woman naked...and she was the first person that i was able to draw without censorship. I could remake her as what i appreciated her for, she was young, and she was attractive...and i had just turned 18. But after sliding the conte over the news print for about 15 minutes i had forgotten what she was, and what i had felt when she slid her robe off. I told the Nigerian that you're either an artist or a perv at some point..If you constantly think of sex with the model..and various models...then something isnt quite right... theres always a chance that someone will model for us and be relatively attractive..but he was fixed on the thought that we all pick our own models and theyre all out of GQ or Vogue...and he kept saying that if he were to draw a woman then he wouldnt be able to think of anything but sex I told him that i drew a 60 year old, overweight woman, who wasnt as "well groomed"..as most of us would like and found the same appreciation for her that i did with that first girl that i drew.
He did not believe me.
He said in Nigeria this is unheard of.
But then... after debating for a few minutes longer he told me that he had visited a local strip club and enjoyed it very much. WHAT? ...Ok so how do you justify going to a strip club and judge me for drawing nude models?
I explained to him that (at least where i live)...strippers are there to make money...they will arouse intentionally, and some of them will have sex with you... But Nude models are lending themselves to artists...some of them artists themselves. What he was saying did not make sense.
Not to mention that his wife was at home while he was getting a lapdance and inserting dollar bills into someones thong.
Someone make sense of this for me.
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Just because it makes sense to your Nigerian co-worker doesn't mean it will ever make sense to you...apparently it is morely right to look at a naked woman you've paid, but not one who models for your class for free. Maybe it is more exceptable to look at a naked person for the express purpose of getting arosed, but not to simply draw and apprieciate said person. I dunno.
Personally, I somehow justify enjoying strip clubs myself even though I consider myself a hardcore feminist and every aspect of my life is fighting for women's rights in some way...so you see, we all bend the rules where we feel it is neccessary for us. But I don't get turned on at strip clubs...I apprieciate the ladies more the way you apprieciate them in art class, and I enjoy paying them to dance...
Love ya,
Carrot
Nothin wrong with strip clubs in my eye. Generally it is the womans choice to work in one and i dont mind going myself. And you're right people are crazy...and this can all seem logical to him i guess i have to realize that i cant always succeed in getting through to everyone, but im still astonished that he thinks that this makes sense.
Btw the models get paid too.
"Prefiero morir parada que vivir la vida en mis rodillas"
This guy really doesn't make sense and I totally see your confusion. I'm an avid student of Art History and I absolutely love all art, including nude pieces. If this man can't see past the nudity then he doesn't deserve the priviledge of art at all.
You can't debate everyone and expect for them to be intelligent. Clearly this guy is an idiot. This has nothing to do with culture. At first I began to think it did. I figured, perhaps over in Nigeria they are strict about a woman's body, kind of like hardcore Muslims, but when he said he goes to strip clubs, I've come to the immediate realization that this guy is an idiot.
You have too much faith in people. Not everyone can give their side of a story and have a valid argument on their behalf. Nude modeling is far more admirable than exotic dancing in my opinion... but that is merely an opinion.
While that is simply my personal belief, there is no culture that exotic dancing would be accepted while nude modeling would be unheard of as if blasphemy. If anything, it'd be the other way around. Clearly, this Nigerian you speak of has either lived a sheltered life, or is a closeted pervert, desperately trying to cover up his dirty mind with foolish and unjust moral opinions that in reality differ from his own.
Either that, or he's a shovinist, who believes the female body isn't something to admire as art, but to take for granted as a sexual object.
Men like to look at pretty girls. They just have different ways of doing it. You do it in art class, he does it at a club. Who is one to judge the other?
Avalon
http://blog.myspace.com/azavalon
my mom is an artist...and used to draw nudes... but then became a christian, and felt conviction that it was wrong.
I also believe it is wrong.
But, that point that your nigerian friend made, was rather retarded.