The Nude: Ideal and Reality--Photography [Paperback]

Peter Weiermair (Author), Claudio Marra (Author), Ulrich Pohlmann (Author)

Book Description

Series: Ideal & Reality | Publication Date: September 18, 2004

This volume presents a selection of 200 extraordinary images that reflect the central role played by the genre of the nude in the history of photography and in its experimentation.
Ever since the invention of photography in 1839 the nude has constituted a favorite subject among the practitioners of the medium. Through numerous extraordinary examples this volume documents the historical and stylistic development of the nude from its origins with the first daguerreotypes to the provocative images of contemporary photographers.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Peter Weiermair is director of the Galleria d'Arte Moderna in Bologna, Italy. He has curated over 400 exhibitions and has published numerous books and articles on modern and contemporary art.

Product Details

• Paperback: 250 pages
• Publisher: Skira (September 18, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 8884918308
• ISBN-13: 978-8884918307
• Product Dimensions: 12.5 x 9.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,485,940 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and scholarly, September 25, 2011

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wiredweird "wiredweird" (Earth, or somewhere nearby) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Nude: Ideal and Reality--Photography (Paperback)

The Galleria d' Arte Moderna curated an exhibit that examined the photographic nude, from the nineteenth centry through the end of the twentieth. The collection feature famous subjects, from Josephine Baker to John Lennon, along with lesser-known and anonymous models.
It also present iconic images, including Man Ray's "Violin", that everyone should recognize, along with images that will be new to the reader. Likewise, photographers range from un-named nineteenth century peep-show artists to landmark names like Stieglitz, Weston, Cunningham, and Mapplethorpe. And, among those, I find a few personal favorites, like Karsten's "Tania" and Bernhardt's "Two Forms" (the cover picture). Dijkstra's new mother appears, clutching her newborn, stomach still loose, and with a drop of blood running down her leg. Despite the one Araki photo of a bound woman, explicit eroticism is rare - any erotic sense comes more from the reader's own mind than from the simple fact of human form.

This collection intentionally covers a vast range. Muybridge's scientific studies of figures in motion reflect the clinical approach that this book takes towards its subject: clear-eyed and somewhat dispassionate, as befits the serious study of its subject. "Serious" does not mean "grim," though, and this ends with a playful and witty photographic homage to Matisse's "The Dance." I recommend this nicely printed collection to anyone interested in the photographic and artistic nude.

-- wiredweird