Nudity has been an essential part of art for centuries, going all the way back to ancient Greece. It has been used to express the ideals of beauty and other human qualities. Nudes became an important genre of art and an essential element of many different kinds of art, including history paintings, religious paintings, and portraiture.The study of the human body has also always been an essential educational tool for artists as well, and it has been said that to accurately paint even a clothed figure, the artist must first learn to paint the nude figure to truly understand the mechanics of what lies beneath the clothes. The human form has been used by artists to express many things, including ideas about beauty, the nature of humanity, and man’s role in the world. It is a vital tool in the artist’s toolkit.In this collection, we present 183 digitally-enhanced, high-resolution works of art from 36 of the world’s greatest painters. They come from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Sixteen of the artists are featured with their own galleries, while the remaining 20 are featured in the book’s final “Eclectic Gallery,” a collection of nudes from various artists.In the Featured Artists section, you will find a short biography of each artist with links provided to more in-depth information. Each artist’s gallery is preceded by a guide which will identify each painting by title and year (when available). Portraits of each artist are also included (when available).