Hey Reader, ⭐
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Greek sculptor Praxiteles made a bold choice by sculpting Aphrodite without clothes, challenging the tradition of depicting the goddess fully clothed. Before him, goddesses, including the goddess of love, were always shown dressed.

🏛️ This marked a turning point, starting a Greek tradition of portraying goddesses without clothes. The well-known Aphrodite of Knidos, inspired by Praxiteles, influenced countless depictions of naked women during the Renaissance and beyond.

💡 Francisco Goya continued this ideas with his famous "Maja Desnuda." Goya broke tradition by showing women realistically, including body hair, departing from the idealized depictions of the past. Goya bridged this gap, especially in portraying female bodies realistically. His "Maja Desnuda" was the first "unmotivated" nude—a regular woman on a couch, not a goddess or mythical figure.

While today we see many photos of women in different settings, Goya's groundbreaking approach was revolutionary, daring what no one had attempted or even considered before. As a master of unique solutions, Goya made a creative breakthrough.

🤔 What connects all these stories? They all share a common thread—they exist because of the unique thinking of their creators or those who commissioned them.

🧩 The paradox of creative thinking is that only a few people develop this built-in function, and many consider it a trait of the chosen few or a thing of the past. Our inclination toward creativity is often tied to repeating familiar patterns and existing schemes. As Andy Warhol wrote, people generally prefer avoiding new realities and detailing the old ones because it's easier.

History is shaped by those who, through willpower, go beyond the usual script, think outside the box, and live by the principle "if you really want it, you can." These are the individuals who dream about the impossible and find ways to make the unthinkable possible, paving new routes in art history. Millions follow their paths until someone dares to leave these well-trodden roads and collapses them to make a new breakthrough.

If you'd like to find out more about the way art can supercharge your soft power skills then do check out our FREE 5-Day Email Challenge: Boost Your Soft Skills with Art that covers Creative Thinking alongside other important skills for the future.

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💡 Curious Bites

⛪ 140 year-long construction The Bible embodied in architecture! Organ for the Lord! The temple that God himself ordered! - this is what Antonio Gaudi said about his famous creation. The Sagrada Familia has been under construction for over 140 years! But when is it coming to an end? ​ Find out

⛩️ Why can you find Chinatown in every major city? The first Chinatown appeared in San Francisco in the 1840s, when natural disasters forced large numbers of Chinese to move to the United States. ​ Tell me more

😴 How did the medieval people sleep? Imagine waking up at night in a hotel and a stranger sleeping next to you? Well, in the Middle Ages this was considered completely normal. ​ Learn more

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✍️ Quote of the week

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Stay curious and have a great week! 💙

Artem & Curious Muse team

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