Untitled [standing female nude leaning on chair arm] 1955 - 1967

Richard Diebenkorn made this drawing of a standing female nude leaning on a chair with charcoal on paper. Look at the energy in those charcoal lines. The body is described with quick strokes and the head is just a mass of scribbled lines. The whole thing pulses with a raw, immediate feel. I can imagine Diebenkorn, squinting, moving fast, trying to capture not just what he sees, but also what he *feels*. The pressure of the charcoal, the way it crumbles slightly on the page. It's all part of the dance. Notice how the lines are so assured, so confident. There's a boldness, a willingness to leave things unresolved. It's like he's saying, "Here's what I saw, here's what I felt, take it or leave it." That directness reminds me of other artists, like Matisse, who were also trying to distill the essence of form with a few well-placed lines. It’s all part of this big conversation that artists have across time. It's about distilling something down to its most essential form, leaving room for ambiguity, and trusting the viewer to fill in the blanks.