A Study Of A Standing Female Nude 

William Etty painted this oil study of a standing female nude in England sometime before 1849. Nude studies like this reflect a tension in British art education at the time. The Royal Academy Schools, where Etty trained, promoted the study of the nude as essential to elevating British art to the level of the old masters. But a strong puritanical streak in British society viewed the public display of nudity as immoral. Etty directly challenged this Victorian prudery by making the female nude the central subject of his art. His commitment to the nude earned him both notoriety and admiration. To better understand the place of the nude in British art, look to sources, like the Royal Academy archives and the writings of contemporary critics. These help us understand how art making is always embedded in social and institutional concerns.