This breath-taking painting is from Watson's Censored Nudes series features the Australian model Nathan Collett. Standing in bright sunlight, Collett appears spellbound, gazing at the coloured ball - in much the same way as the viewer can get lost in the shiny and seductive detail of the bubble which appears to envelope him.
The bubble operates as a metaphor for the fleeting physical beauty of youth. Watson's expert rendering has achieved a highly believable result.
Are our attitudes toward nudity and the human body being influenced by what we can view through Instagram or Facebook? With an increasing amount of people using these apps for their primary news and information source are we headed down a path where the human form in its purest state is unacceptable? What do social media companies have to fear by allowing the whole body to be viewed. And more importantly, why are these standards haphazardly applied?
