Stock still and stark naked

Models need to be fit to keep still for so long

Television viewers are getting a taste of how artists go about drawing life models with a series of classes on Channel 4. But what is it like to pose naked for art?

It's cold, all eyes are on you, and you're naked. It sounds like a recurring nightmare, but this was an everyday occurrence for life model Sarah Snee.  The artists don't view you sexually - they see the body as a series of lines and shadows, a piece of art  Sarah Snee Life model From Leonardo da Vinci to Lucian Freud, artists have always taken their inspiration from the human body by turning to life drawing to understand the naked form. While the painter may get all the attention, on the other side of the canvas is the lesser-known life model. Sarah started modelling when studying at Slade School of Fine Art, University College London. As a student strapped for cash the allure of making money modelling for art was too much to resist. But there was another motivation - self exploration. "I was intrigued by the idea of being naked in front of strangers," says Sarah. "Especially at the age of 20 when you're still getting to know your own body and developing your own sexuality. It was a very romantic idea, a bohemian idea." Artist's gaze Sarah can recall the first time she modelled, as she met the eyes of the students posed to draw her, she felt self-conscious. Her mind raced with questions. "My first time was daunting. I was wondering what people thought of my body. Was I attractive enough? Did my bum look big? The things most people would be concerned with. The art world is littered with famous nudes "I had just got back from holiday and I felt like I'd put on lots of weight. I thought I can't do this, what had I been thinking? But then I realised what I felt was only natural. From then I relaxed and it was easier." Despite being under the intense scrutiny of a room full of pupils, male and female, Sarah found she quickly became used to being under the artist's gaze. "It made me feel more confident about my body. I felt liberated. I feel more self-conscious wearing a bikini on holiday with friends than I did when I was naked in front of strangers. "For me it was a means to channel that exhibitionism. I quite liked getting naked in front of strangers. I find it quite exhilarating, you're the centre of attention and you're enabling people to be creative." When Sarah decided to become a life model people were intrigued. "I think some guys liked it. It was a good line to use as a student meeting people in bars. It got people interested and I definitely got a few boyfriends from it." HISTORY OF LIFE DRAWING 1st Century AD: Roman philosopher Pliny tells of Zeuxis viewing women naked and selecting five to combine to paint an ideal image 1487: Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man, depicts naked male form as proportionate 1580s: Carraci's art school in Bologna focuses on life drawing 1700s: Students in Jacques-Louis David's studio must master drawing Some artists see drawing from observation as the pinnacle of the practice, allowing a chance to capture the essence of the form, recreating it in a way that copying a photograph just cannot compare to. According to artist Alan Kane, life drawing has become less fashionable. Kane, the man behind the Channel 4 series, Life Class: Today's Nude, says life modelling should be viewed as "educational and non-sexualised nudity". However, life modelling has gained some dodgy associations, Sarah explains. "People say to me isn't life modelling really weird? Isn't it a bit sexual? Of course there are men who have this idea they're all going to draw these naked women and it's going to be thrilling. "But the artists don't view you sexually. They see the body as a series of lines and shadows, a piece of art." Depicting anatomy has been a valued skill for centuries Perhaps a more pressing issue for the typical life model is the cold. "There's a heater normally, but the worst place was the freezing Canvas Gallery in Islington [in north London]," says Sarah. "They had a gas burner and it blew towards you, it was a little scary. I was paranoid about it blowing up." As if catching a chill wasn't enough, posing can also be physically challenging. You have to be very fit to remain motionless. "I think I've got thread veins [small blood vessels near the surface of the skin] prematurely from modelling because you are cutting off the blood supply over long lengths of time. "I used to get extreme pain, some poses were just agonising. Imagine sitting down and resting on your hand, twisting slightly to the right. There's pain in your wrist, pain in your buttocks and the lower back from the pressure." There are always bad experiences, but life as a model can also be rewarding. One artist sold paintings of Sarah in a Paris show. A painting was bought by a top buyer, and is currently displayed alongside a Vermeer in the French capital. With her image holding pride of place in Paris, Sarah feels part of her will live on beyond her years. "It's nice to think there's a little bit of me that will survive out there somewhere. It's lovely to think my image is out there bringing people happiness." This article appeared on BBC Magazine Online here.

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