Figure Drawing Series No. 11 1965

Curator: Frank Lobdell’s ink drawing, "Figure Drawing Series No. 11," created in 1965, immediately grabs your attention with its stark contrasts. It presents a nude figure seated, caught in what seems to be a moment of contemplation. Editor: I'd say 'brooding' rather than contemplating. There's a heaviness there, in the darkness of the ink and the slumping posture. Almost feels like the weight of the world is settling on her. Curator: You picked up on that melancholy. The seated nude, a classic art motif, takes on new layers. Nudity itself is laden with art historical symbolism; a vulnerability and authenticity laid bare. Notice how the linework, though abstract, still manages to convey both the form and a distinct psychological space. The weaving of the chair contrasts against the flow of the model’s flesh; I would also note how the weave mimics similar textures throughout the work Editor: Absolutely, that raw texture! It's funny, isn’t it? We build all these defenses, mental and physical, but then Lobdell comes along with some ink and suddenly the underlying… everything…is revealed, plain as day. There’s this exposed-nerve kind of feel to the strokes, so decisive yet unfinished at the same time. Curator: Decisive yet unfinished indeed! The abstraction pushes the traditional theme of the nude into new conceptual territory. What does it say that, while still being identifiable as a nude, the image also evokes internal struggle, which goes back to your word brooding, using a symbol. Editor: I am thinking about what Lobdell had been up to, and how that might’ve made his way into the drawing. A friend dying… family troubles… he translated this emotion onto paper so viscerally it becomes more about mood and emotion than merely rendering a body. Curator: That intersection is fascinating – the personal expressed through these archetypal artistic themes. Editor: It makes you think, what are our symbols now? What shorthand do we have to convey so much with so little, and how much of this depends on our existing cultural baggage? Curator: Food for thought, certainly. Lobdell's piece invites a continual conversation between what is seen and what is felt, even generations later. Editor: Definitely makes me want to crack open the art history books and get brooding myself!