Drawing Nudes - Should a Christian Do It?

Most students taking post-secondary ne art classes will be faced with an opportunity to draw the unclothed human body. I was, and at the time I didn't feel that there was a huge moral decision to make. I believed that the human body was something beautiful, and that drawing it for art's sake was a valid reason. Some years after taking these classes however, I became a Christian and slowly gained a better understanding of this issue with a spiritual perspective. 1. Does drawing nudes benet me on earth? Many people claim that making drawings from a live nude model is essential for understanding the human anatomy and for getting a sense of bodily proportions necessary for making good drawings. Before accepting this as a fact, it is important to examine the issue carefully: Is this really better training than drawing a clothed body? If we wanted to draw an animal properly, would our skills benet more from removing all of its feathers or hair, or from careful observation of our subject, and much practise? Is it necessary to draw from a completely nude model, i.e.: does exposed genitalia provide an advantage over, say, a model in a swimsuit?

In considering these questions, it seems to me that the need to develop drawing skills cannot by itself provide a rationale for drawing completely nude models. 2. Does drawing nudes benet me spiritually? When considering whether to draw nudes, one should consider the risk of having lustful thoughts. Consider Jesus words: You have heard that it was said, `Do not commit adultery.' But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. (Matthew 5:27-30 NIV) From this passage we learn that such sins are very serious, they happen very easily, and that it is very important to do whatever we can to avoid them, whether inside or outside the artists studio. 3. Does drawing nudes benet others? On the surface, helping people to appreciate the beauty of the human body sounds like a noble reason to make nude drawings. The problem, however, is that people do not always respond in the way we suppose they should. The Bible asserts that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23 NIV) and from my personal experience I can afrm this to be true, especially in the context of drawing nudes.

During my art school days, my class drew several different models, each of whom were under the scrutiny of the students for long periods of time. Instead of developing a greater appreciation for the beauty of these people, they showed a different reaction. Any model that was a bit too old, too heavy, too thin --anything less than perfect-received rude comments and nicknames behind their backs. Only the models with the perfect, young bodies escaped such comments. Talking with any of the models during our breaks revealed that they truly were beautiful people. They were beautiful regardless of their bodies, yet it is the sad case that they needed to have a "perfect" body in order to avoid the secret insults they received. We must consider that people are prone to cruelty and crudeness, and some people are also particularly vulnerable to lust. Someone who sees your drawing may be struggling with or recovering from an addiction to pornography, or they may be tempted to commit sexual crimes. So exposing another person to nude drawings may not only harm them spiritually, it may also put other people in danger. We would do well to make our decision based on the principles of these words: Jesus said to his disciples: "Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. So watch yourselves. (Luke 17:2-3 NIV) All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall. (Romans 14:20b-21 NIV) 4. Do I have the right to look at this model? The Bible as a whole places a very high value on marriage. It is intended to be a reection of Christs relationship with the church (see Ephesians 5:21-33), which is ideally a relationship of reciprocal deep devotion. May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth. A loving doe, a graceful deer -- may her breasts satisfy you always, may you ever be captivated by her love. Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress? Why embrace the bosom of another mans wife? (Proverbs 5:18-20, NIV) When drawing nudes, unless you are drawing your own husband or wife, before you is someone who either is married or may eventually be married to someone else. Do we (or the audience of our artwork) have any business satisfying our eyes with this persons body? How would we feel if our own husband or wife was exposed in this way to other people? Would it not be good to know that his or her body was saved for you alone? We should carefully assess whether it is worthwhile to look upon this model (or anything else) and cry out with the psalmist: Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word. (Psalm 119:37, NIV) 5. What is my purpose for drawing nudes? The ability to create works of art is a gift from God. Like His other gifts to us, He expects us to enjoy it while maintaining righteousness, purity, and love for others. A Christian professor of art history, Dr. H. R. Rookmaaker wrote Purity in art means helping those who read or listen or see to have pure thoughts. It does not titillate, does

not play on peoples wrong desires, it does not seduce. It helps man to see the good and the beautiful. It shows iniquity, it protests, but in a protest of love against the unjust and the debased and evil. (Modern Art and the Death of a Culture, Inter-Varsity Press, 1970. p.239). There is room for many images and types of art, but they should remain within Gods framework. In deciding the purpose of your artwork, ask yourself a few more questions: If I draw for enjoyment, would I enjoy drawing nude images more than other subjects? Why? What am I communicating by using nudity in my artwork? How will it affect my audience? Is it necessary? What did the "old masters" achieve with their use of nudity? Does being an outstanding artist necessarily make you an exemplary Christian? Any others you can think of.

The wonderful thing about knowing God is that He gives our lives meaning and purpose (see 1 Corinthians 3). We should let Him work in us to will and to act according to His good purpose. This brings us to the next question: 6. Have I discussed drawing nudes with God? In our search for the right path in life, we can sometimes forget that God is at the end of our journey, and also with us all along the way. God is interested in you personally, and wants to be intimately involved in every detail of your life, including your art life: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. (Proverbs 3:1, NIV) If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without nding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a doubleminded man, unstable in all he does. (James 1:5-8, NIV) Talk to God--tell Him about your situation, your plans, your hopes, your weaknesses, your worries. And listen. Ask Him for wisdom and He will eventually give it, just as He promised. He can speak to you through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, or godly people, to name a few ways. Keep in mind though, that whatever method he uses He will never contradict anything that He has said in Scripture. You might wish to meditate on 1 Timothy 2:9-10 and consider why Paul would ask women to dress modestly. 7. Can I do it in faith? After asking God to give us wisdom about drawing nudes, the time will come when we need to make our decision. I have brought up many points in this article which may seem to imply that drawing nudes is one hundred percent wrong and should be forbidden. That is not my intent, for I wish to be sensitive to persons who aspire to be medical illustrators or have some other purpose that they truly feel is worthwhile. My main intent is to point you toward God, so that your decisions may ow out of your

relationship with Him and your knowledge of His word. That being said, I wish to share with you the passage of scripture that has aided me most in my important decisions: Romans chapter 14. In this book Paul is discussing true faith and how it relates to eating certain foods. First he declares that ...no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean(vs. 14). Then he goes on to say: So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin. (Romans 14:22-23, NIV) How does this relate to drawing nudes? As Paul says in verses 5-8: Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. So make your decision carefully. For as verse 12 says, each of us will give an account of himself to God.