The Body Laid Bare: Masterpieces from Tate

Encounter the human form – in all its complexity – in The Body Laid Bare: Masterpieces from Tate, Auckland Art Gallery’s major exhibition for 2017.

Beautiful, sensual and at times provocative, more than 100 artworks from Tate, London, tell the story of the nude and trace artists’ captivation with the human body over the last two centuries.

Journeying through time, from the classical, biblical and literary subjects of the 1800s to the body politics of contemporary art, The Body Laid Bare brings together masterpieces by renowned artists including JMW Turner, Auguste Rodin, Pierre Bonnard, Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Louise Bourgeois, Cindy Sherman, Sarah Lucas and many more.

At the heart of the show is Auguste Rodin’s marble sculpture The Kiss which – although celebrated worldwide – is travelling beyond Europe for the first time. Other renowned works include Picasso’s Nude woman in a red chair (1932) and Bonnard’s The bath (1925).

Download exhibition labels >

This exhibition originated at the Art Gallery of New South Wales as a co-curated collaboration with Tate.

? Auguste Rodin, The Kiss 1901–4 (detail)
Tate: Purchased with assistance from the Art Fund and public contributions 1953. Image: © Tate, London 2017

Any-day admission – includes free exhibition brochure and entry to daily pop-up tours at 1pm and 3pm

General admission $23
Earlybird tickets  $18
Concession $18
(Community Services Card holders, Seniors, Students with ID)
Children 12 and under FREE
(must be accompanied by an adult)
Members FREE – Become a Member

Adult groups

Booked guided tours for adult groups of 10 or more $20
(per person; must be booked two weeks in advance)

Partner offers

Rialto Cinemas Cine Buzz members $18
Delegates at Auckland Conventions’ venues $18

Open Late events

Open Late general admission $30
(4 April, 2 May, 13 June)

 

 

 

 

 

How to book

In advance

We're partnering with Eventfinda to offer online ticket sales for The Body Laid Bare. 

BUY ANY-DAY TICKETS

BUY OPEN LATE TICKETS

On the day

You can also buy tickets on any day of the exhibition (Saturday 18 March – Sunday 16 July 2017) from the Gallery's information desk.

More information

Prices include GST. Booking and delivery fees, where charged, are additional to the admission price.

There is no entry charge for children aged 12 or under. 

Auckland Art Gallery Members go FREE. Present your membership card at the information desk on the day of your visit and you will be issued with a ticket to the exhibition. Members with guest passes may also bring their guests for FREE.

BUY MEMBERSHIP

Our rich programme of special events is designed to complement your visit. Discover the history of the nude in art, uncover the personal stories behind the artworks, see and hear from New Zealand’s sharpest thinkers, and experience The Body Laid Bare after dark during our series of Open Late events. We're also offering free pop up themed tours of the exhibition at 1pm and 3pm daily.

As far as I am concerned the paint is the person. I want it to work for me just as flesh does.Lucian Freud

Groups

Adult groups

Booked guided tours for adult groups of 10 or more should be booked at least two weeks in advance of your visit by emailing us with the details of your group, group size and preferred date(s) and time(s) of visit. Tours will last one hour and include admission into the exhibition. Concession pricing and Member discounts do not apply. Payment can be made at the Gallery's front desk on the day of your visit.

Unguided adult groups of 10 or more should also be booked at least two weeks in advance of your visit by emailing us with the details of your group, group size and preferred date(s) and time(s) of visit. Any-day admission pricing applies. Booking is strongly recommended and booked groups will be prioritised. Large groups will be admitted into the exhibition in smaller groups.

 

Education groups

All education group visits to The Body Laid Bare for 10 or more people should be booked at least two weeks in advance of your visit by emailing education@aucklandartgallery.com and must be confirmed by the Gallery in writing. For full details of adult group visits, as well as links to our programmes tailored to primary, secondary, tertiary and ESOL education groups, see below. Booked groups will be prioritised. Large groups will be admitted into the exhibition in smaller groups.

To make a booking, email us.

 

Early childhood, primary, secondary and tertiary education group bookings

Nudity is depicted in this exhibition so guidance from a parent or guardian is recommended for younger viewers. Please contact us if you have any questions.

For all education groups participating in the Gallery’s facilitated schools programmes that feature a visit to The Body Laid Bare:

Early childhood groups FREE
Primary school groups FREE
Secondary school groups $10
Tertiary and ESOL groups $10

Teacher/helper-to-student ratios apply. Teachers/helpers up to the required ratio pay the student rate; teachers/helpers above the required ratio pay any-day admission rates.

Facilitated education programmes

Education groups that study a specific or limited number of artworks in The Body Laid Bare as part of a broader education programme will be charged the usual price for the schools programme in which they are participating. For details of these programmes, visit our Primary and Secondary pages and look out for references to The Body Laid Bare.

 

Photography
 

Photography and filming is not permitted in The Body Laid Bare, so please keep your camera or your smartphone in your pocket. View the Gallery's full photography policy. 

Shop

Visit our shop on the ground level or online for gifts inspired by The Body Laid Bare. Delve into designer items, including homewares and ceramics featuring the work of the Guerrilla Girls and Louise Bourgeois and toiletries by Aesop and Petalhead, or search out our limited-edition jewellery and tote bags. Alongside life-drawing supplies, postcards and prints of key artworks from the exhibition and more, you could also pick up a copy of Nude: art from the Tate collection, the exhibition’s companion book.

 

 

 

Pacific Bodies

On the occasion of The Body Laid Bare, Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki and British Council invited New Zealand artists of Pacific heritage to offer a counter-narrative to the themes of the exhibition.

 

 

Video

Interviews with Emma Chambers, Curator Modern British Art at Tate