A group of male nudists and naturalists visit the “Nude Men ” exhibit in Vienna. Photo courtesy of Associated Press.
An ongoing art exhibit in Vienna’s Leopold Museum is solely dedicated to male nudity, which on Monday happened to attract a crowd of … nude males.
A group of male nudists and naturalists visited a special screening for the art exhibition, titled “Nude Men from 1800 to Today.”
In November, a man reportedly stripped down to nothing during his initial visit to the exhibit. He walked throughout the exhibit while naked, until a security guard order him to put his clothes back on. This story helped in bringing more attention and demand for the exhibition.
Elmgreen & Dragset, Shepherd Boy (Tank Top), 2009 – Courtesy of Galleri Nocolai Wallner/ VBK Wien 2012
Museum spokesman Klaus Pokorny spoke to the Associated Press about the new attention the exhibit received:
We got requests from all over the world from people who were inspired by the exhibition … who asked us, ‘Can we visit the exhibition naked?’
The exhibition pays homage to male nudity through its artistic depictions from the 19th century to present day. Some of the art being showcased includes a phallic sculpture of Louise Bourgeois (“Fillette (Sweeter Version”) and Andy Warhol’s poster artwork for the Fassbinder film, “Quereller.”
François-Léon Benouville, Achills Zorn, 1847 – Musée Fabre de Montpellier
Pierre & Gilles, Vive la France, 2006 – Privatsammlung, Courtesy Galerie Jérôme de Noirmont
300 paintings, drawings, photographs and sculptures in total are on display.
This Vienna art museum exhibition began on October 19, 2012 and will be open until March 4, 2013. Video previews of the art exhibition can be viewed below. Viewer discretion is advised:
This isn’t the first case of a museum hosting nude tours. Sydney, Australia’s Museum of Contemporary Art welcomed visitors to its clothing-free tours last year. Their reasoning for the move? It was designed to bring people closer to the art and help them gain a new perspective into the museum experience.