Mary Beard's Shock Of The Nude Season 1
Mary Beard explores our centuries-long obsession with the nude in art, from ancient marble to modern controversy - and why it still shocks us today.
In Mary Beard’s Shock of the Nude, the acclaimed historian examines how artists have portrayed the naked body from Ancient Greece to today. With her signature wit and insight, Beard unpacks beauty, desire, and power in iconic works like Michelangelo’s David and the Venus de Medici — revealing that every era’s art reflects its own anxieties about flesh and freedom.
Rialto Recommends: Mary Beard’s Shock of the Nude If this were a true story — and it is — the human body would be history’s boldest canvas. Mary Beard takes us on an intelligent, provocative journey through 2,000 years of art, asking why the nude still excites, offends, and fascinates — and what our reaction says about us.
Episodes
Episode 1 - The Body Beautiful
1h 0mFrom the Ancient Greeks to the taboo-busting painters and sculptors of today, Mary gives a deeply personal take on naked bodies in art. Just why are artists so interested in nudity? What can art reveal about our own attitudes to the body? For Mary, the nude stands on some of the deepest fault lines running through society, speaking to issues of gender, sex and moral transgression.
Episode 2 - Under the Skin
1h 0mMary gives a deeply personal take on how artists have depicted the naked body, from the Ancient Greeks to the taboo-busting painters and sculptors of today. Just why are artists so interested in nudity? And what can art reveal about our own attitudes to the body? Art critics over the centuries have often made lofty claims about the nude – playing down or refusing to acknowledge the erotic and even pornographic nature of some of the great works of Western Art. Mary argues we mustn’t forget the edgy and dangerous nature of the nude – ultimately the reason it remains a magnetic subject for artists and viewers alike.