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It wasn’t until he was a young married man serving in the Royal Canadian Navy while living in Moncton in the mid 1950s that he first tried naturism.

His wife was hesitant to join him at first. Some women from the club however, got in touch with her and managed to put her at ease.

Howard has been an avid naturist ever since.

“Some people say, ‘Oh you just want to show off (but) no, it just feels comfortable.”

In 2004 a fellow naturist taking an art class at the Nepean Sportsplex suggested he would be a good model and he should think about joining the many life drawing models that work the circuit. He scoffed at the suggestion saying, “What do you mean model? That’s for young, good looking people!”

“Well for one thing, your face is fantastic for drawing,” the friend replied, “and good artists are drawing human beings the way they are.”

So Howard gave it a try and now poses two or three times a month for about three hours at a time. He earns about $25 an hour.

Algonquin College Life Drawing professor and independent animator Jeff Amey says, “Howard’s age is one obvious attribute that is rare in the world of life drawing.”

“Not many people his age are willing to take off their clothes and hold a pose for 20 or 30 minutes allowing students to draw them from 360 degrees.”

“His poses may be less dynamic in gesture but he has a great profile that the students can work with to get some real caricature.”

Across the city at the Greenboro Life Drawing Workshop, Ella-Rose Swinimer manages to stifle a sneeze while holding a pose during a Saturday afternoon session.

“That’s a pretty funny thing that can happen to you (when posing), especially nude,” the professional model, photographer and media entrepreneur says with a laugh.

She was convinced to model for art classes more than 10 years ago when a friend who was an animation artist suggested she should attend a life drawing art group at the Sandy Hill Community Centre to see what was involved.

Photo by Wayne Cuddington / Ottawa Citizen

“I knew that fine art models are nude so I was a bit offended at first,” she says. “But when I saw all the beautiful art being made from the model posing, I thought that is something I really wanted to do.”

Serafina Adams recently returned to posing after a four year hiatus now that her four-year-old son started school. She started out doing photography modelling for a friend when she learned about life drawing classes from another photographer. She practises both yoga and martial arts which helps her to control the poses.

“It’s very different than photography modelling because the poses are longer and you have to be more in tune with your body and understand yourself,” she says.

If you’re interested in becoming a model or wish to attend as an artist there are a number of art schools and workshops organized around the city and you can easily start your search at the Greenboro Life Drawing Workshop or the Sandy Hill Life Drawing Workshop.