Untitled [seated female nude with head in left hand] 1955 - 1967

Richard Diebenkorn made this seated nude with ink on paper, and you can almost feel the artist's hand moving across the page, feeling out the form. The lines are so immediate, so sure, yet with a kind of searching quality. You know, as a painter, I always wonder what an artist is thinking when they make certain choices. Did he pause, maybe squint at the model, tilt his head, trying to capture that exact curve of the shoulder? I love the simplicity, the bareness of it all. Just ink, paper, and the artist's focused gaze. There's a confidence in the mark-making, and the negative space is as important as the lines themselves. I think about other artists who've explored similar territory – maybe Matisse, but Diebenkorn has a uniquely American sensibility. It is so simple and straightforward, it feels deeply personal. It reminds us that art is a conversation across time, that we're all drawing inspiration from each other, and that sometimes the simplest gestures can speak the loudest.