[aktdrawing]

There is a nude art model who's made some posts on Quora about her job. She even posted a drawing from a class she modeled for (attached here). Here's one of them:

Q: What does it feel like being a life (nude) model for art classes? I would love to try it, but I’m unsure of how it is in reality.

Yes, I’ve done this on and off for several years now and modeled for different types of art classes ranging from drawing, to sculpture, to animation, to anatomical studies and more. The most common are drawing classes. All these classes are done in an almost clinical manner, nothing sexy or erotic about posing nude in them. In fact sexy type poses aren't encourage at all. It's an artistic learning environment which is regulated by the instructor. And the learning process is taken seriously. The students or artists study you in order to improve their skills, and most everyone behaves accordingly.

Each class is slightly different in what you end up doing. However the common theme for me is this: At the beginning of the class you can get a little nervous before you take your robe off. I have somehow never gotten over this even for as long as I've be doing it. But once the robe is off and you are nude in front of the class the nervous energy only last for a minute or two, then you calm down and start to concentrate on holding the pose, and you almost forget you're nude. Whether it's a short action pose that last a minute, or a long pose that can last 20 minutes. Once you are holding a pose sometimes fatigue can set in, muscles get tired and sore, you can get cramps, limbs can fall a sleep or any combination of these. It can be a balancing act to try to offset the effects of these while holding perfectly still for the given amount of time. Not as easy as you think. I've learned to do subtle little things with my body to help offset these while holding perfectly still and maintaining the pose. Boredom can also set in specially for the longer poses, and you have to find ways to deal with this as well. ...And did I mention the cold?! When the temperature is very low even with the space heaters on you will always feel the cold on you in some way. As a model you need to be able to handle a good amount of cold within reason. You will be fully nude and holding still, so its not like you can move around to warm yourself up, you must bear the cold and stay still. This is especially true in the dead of winter, where you may find yourself without a stitch on in a room where everyone has a jacket or sweater on. Although most art instructors are good about making sure there is heat in the room, sometimes it may not be enough. Regardless of all these factors of discomfort you have to do your job and maintain the pose. Unless of course it becomes unbearable you could injure yourself. But as a capable artist model you should know what type of poses you can handle before going into one. What I mentioned here is is pretty much the reality of it. So if you're thinking this is an easy job where you just get naked and sit there, sometimes it may not always turn out that way. You may have to put some effort into it. For me knowing there are people relying on me to hold the pose, helps me to maintain it even more and put that extra effort I need to do a good job of modeling for the artists.

The one type of class where I found that the modeling experience is somewhat different than most other classes, are the art classes where they do lectures on the human anatomy. You may not encounter some of the things I mentioned previously, but it can be just as challenging. These type of classes however, aren't very common and most models may never model for one. In these classes you don't really hold poses, at least most of the time. You mainly stand in front of the room facing the class as the lecture goes on and they methodically study your anatomy. Your whole body will be talked about very objectively, pointed at so the class can learn the proportions and lines of the human form. And you will be made to face different directions so they can study your body from all sides. You will be the live example for the students to see the muscles, bones, and landmarks of the figure for them to draw later. If you end up modeling for one of these classes be prepared to have yourself seen as if you were an object on exhibit and be talked about in such a way. Which is a good thing in this context since they aren't talking about you personally but about the anatomy of the body. Like where a certain muscle separates, or even where fat tissues are in certain areas of the body. So it does take a certain amount of 'putting yourself out there' and being okay with being objectified and put on display for the class to study. This can last for a few minutes or the whole class session of a few hours. Keep in mind you will be totally nude when this happens and your body will be fully displayed and talked about in front of a room full of people. Most people could never see themselves doing something like this, although it seems they have no problem when it comes to viewing someone else. You as an art model must be that someone willing to do what they can't. After all art modeling isn't your typical job. I mention this because you really need to give the outward appearance of being calm and collected, regardless of how you feel inside, while allowing yourself to be viewed and and studied. Because if you appear overly nervous it will be awkward for the students as well. And like I said, these type of classes aren't very common, and they tend to use visibly fit models for these type of classes since it helps the students see the muscles and lines of the body better. As opposed to other classes where the model's shape doesn't matter as much. However its good to know what you can expect just in case.

This job may not always be as easy or as glamorous most people think it is, and it can actually be hard work or sometimes boring posing for long periods. The good part is you get to see the artistic process and you are the live model that helped to make it come about. So if you think you can handle it then I would practice posing very still for about 15 minutes to give you an idea if you are actually are physically capable before you go about and applying for the job. Keep in mind there is not always an opening and they may put on and a waiting list and may not even call you since its up to the instructor or model coordinators to select what types of models they need to book for the class sessions. Local artists groups may be easier to get to model for, however they may also be as selective depending what they want and who they have available.