Untitled [front view of standing nude with her left arm raised] 1955 - 1967

This is a drawing by Richard Diebenkorn, made with ink on paper, of a standing nude. The beauty of this piece is in the process, the way the ink seems to flow and pool, creating these beautiful darks and lights. There's a wonderful sense of the artist figuring it out as he goes along. The texture of the ink gives the figure a real sense of weight and presence. Look at the way he's rendered the left arm, raised above her head. There's a fluidity to the line, a real confidence in the gesture. But then, elsewhere, the ink is more tentative, almost hesitant. I see a connection here with the work of Willem de Kooning, another artist who was unafraid to embrace the messy, unresolved aspects of the creative process. It’s this willingness to leave things open, to resist the urge to smooth everything out, that makes this drawing so compelling. For Diebenkorn, and for all of us artists, art is always a conversation.