A finished sketch from the Life Drawing classes sits on display in a hallway on the fourth floor of the Art and Design Building. Some models pose not only for the drawing classes, but for painting classes also.

She stood still, seconds from being naked in a room full of strangers.

“So I take my bathrobe off now,” “Julie” said, and dropped her robe to the floor, “Oh and I’m naked.”

For most people, the idea of standing completely naked in front of a group of strangers is one of a handful of least desirable scenarios imaginable.

Julie, a model for the “Life Drawing” classes at the University of Kansas, said she was nervous the first time.

Franklin Fantini, Lawrence junior is one of four other models this summer. He had a different experience his first time. Fantini said he was nervous, but was more apprehensive about posing than being naked.

“Posing is just as personal,” Fantini said.

The “Life Drawing” classes in the art department, part of the school of fine arts at the University, utilize nude models for the study and rendering of the human form, according to Leigh Ann Livingston, a senior administrative assistant in the art department. Livingston is also in charge of hiring the models for classes.

EMPLOYMENT

Livingston said that most of the models were recruited by other models, and that their advertising is mostly word of mouth. Sometimes ads are placed on bulletin boards in the Art and Design Building, which is west of Budig Hall.

Models aren’t always students and are not required to be fit. The art department prefers a variety of models for the benefit of art students. The students also want a variety of models because they want to observe and draw different body types, according to Livingston.

“Models come in all shapes, sizes and ages,” Livingston said. “We also get a lot of former students.”

The models start at $8.50 per hour and get a dollar raise after a year, Julie said.

DRAWING

When it came to drawing from observation, Melissa Watson, the summer lecturer of the “Life Drawing” course, said the most important thing was that artists broke down their preconceptions of what things looked like so that they could actually draw what they saw.

“The idea of using the human form is that it happens to be the most complex,” Watson said. “Not only in the amount of preconceptions that we carry around as human beings about what our body looks like, what it should look like. Also because it’s a machine that can do so much.”

Watson eluded to the joints of the human body as moving parts and described the way a person’s body looks under different light and in different positions to explain the machine analogy.

POSING

Watson’s classes usually begin with “Gestures,” which require the model to pose for 10 to 15 seconds in any position they choose before switching. This exercise forces Watson’s students to work quickly without thinking much about their preconceived notions.

The longer poses follow, which can be as brief as a few minutes or as long as 45 minutes. Watson usually directs the model for longer poses. Those poses allow the model to sit, Julie said.

Even though they’re supposed to remain still, the model can adjust if a part of their body gets tired or scratch an itch if they need to, Fantini said.

MISCONCEPTIONS

Livingston said that many people don’t understand the purpose of using nude models in art classes.

“Nudity is different from nakedness,” Livingston said. “This is a setting in which the body is seen as an object for study, there’s a purpose. It’s not something to gape or gawk at.”

Art students take the study of the human form seriously. Katie Hunt, Memphis, Tenn., sophomore, is a student in “Life Drawing” this semester. She said the atmosphere in the classroom is always professional.

Fantini attributes that professionalism to the purpose at hand.

“They’re not judging me,” Fantini said. “We’re both students trying to do a job.”

Hunt and Watson said they were nervous the first time they drew the nude human form in an art class. Watson said she was anticipating feeling uncomfortable, but said that the anticipation was worse than the reality.

“The model sits down, they’re nude and they look bored as hell,” Watson said. “And you’re like, oh, this is actually really mundane. There is nothing titillating about it, nothing sexual about it.”

Hunt thought it would be strange the first time she drew a nude model, but said it wasn’t.

“The teacher told us that it’s only as awkward as you make it,” Hunt said. “We were told to treat it as drawing another object.”

IMPACT ON MODELS

Julie said that her job was important because art students need to learn how to draw the human figure, and if they have to draw someone, she was happy to help them become better.

Posing has helped her confidence and her openness in relationships, so she recommended that her friends became models. Two of her friends, including Fantini, have started posing for drawing classes because of her positive experience. Fantini said he would model for as long as he could.

After that first time, more than a year ago, Julie has become more comfortable posing. “If you can stand naked in front of 20 people, you can do just about anything,” Julie said. “I really enjoy it.”