Nude Reclining to the Left, Right Hand Touching Foot 

This is Mark Rothko's sketch "Nude Reclining to the Left, Right Hand Touching Foot" made with lines that trace and delineate the form. It is an intimate portrayal, the lines themselves feel personal and immediate. The composition emphasizes a study in form and perspective. Rothko uses line to map the contours of the human figure, exploring the interplay between positive and negative space. The reclining nude challenges traditional representations, focusing less on idealized beauty and more on the raw structure of the body. Rothko’s choice of line—its thickness, its breaks—suggests a process of discovery, a semiotic exploration of the human form. His lines feel less like a depiction and more like an investigation. It is this tension between representation and abstraction that invites us to consider how line can both define and destabilize meaning.