The Royal Academy is to ensure its next exhibition of nudes has an equal gender split of naked men and women, as it navigates the post-Me Too era.

The Academy, which has just undergone a major restructure to celebrate its 250th anniversary, will have almost exact parity between paintings, sculptures and drawings of male and female nudes in its forthcoming exploration of Renaissance art.

The decision, confirmed by the gallery’s director Tim Marlow at its season launch today, marks the first time the Royal Academy has introduced a makeshift gender quota to its exhibitions as a “very interesting exercise”.

The Renaissance Nude, due to open in March 2019, will include around 85 works created from 1400 to 1530 designed to track the development of the “idea and ideal” of the nude throughout Europe.

The announcement, made as part of the Royal Academy’s 2019 season launch, follows a period of deep crisis in the arts, as television, film, theatre, music and the visual arts all re-examine their treatment of women in the wake of #metoo sex abuse revelations.