Untitled [sleeping female nude] 1955 - 1967

Editor: Here we have Richard Diebenkorn’s pencil drawing, Untitled [sleeping female nude], created sometime between 1955 and 1967. There’s a rawness to the sketchiness of the lines, but also an undeniable intimacy to the subject. How do you interpret the visual language at play here? Curator: The imagery evokes a very particular cultural memory for me. This academic study harkens back to classical ideals of beauty while also existing firmly within the mid-20th century’s re-evaluation of the figure. Notice how the strong, almost hurried lines give weight and form but do so without idealizing? The hatching implies shadow, but what else does it suggest to you? Editor: Hmm, the hatching does give depth, but it also obscures certain details. It almost feels like the body is both present and disappearing at the same time. Curator: Precisely! And that tension, that push and pull, speaks volumes about how we grapple with representing the human form. Think of all the historical baggage attached to the nude: power, vulnerability, desire... How does Diebenkorn's piece seem to renegotiate those loaded symbols? Editor: I hadn’t really thought about it that way before, but I see your point. By not overly idealizing the body, and using the hatching, Diebenkorn is allowing some power to reside in the viewer. Curator: Yes, he gives us space to project our own interpretations, inviting us to confront the ever-shifting landscape of beauty and representation. I wonder if Diebenkorn consciously aimed for a primal image, evoking fertility figurines, earth mothers from antiquity, an art infused by psychological, anthropological, historical, and cultural knowledge. Editor: So interesting. I'll certainly look at other figurative works with an eye towards the loaded symbols they bring to the table.