Untitled [seated female nude with left hand on right knee] 1955 - 1967

Curator: Looking at this stark ink drawing, I am immediately struck by its intimacy. The figure seems almost vulnerable, raw in its depiction. Editor: Indeed. What we have here is an "Untitled" work, from between 1955 and 1967, created by Richard Diebenkorn. It's an ink drawing of a seated female nude, sketched with minimal lines. These drawings were most probably created during studio sessions. Do you see the echo of modern masters in its form? Curator: Absolutely. The starkness, the almost brutal honesty of the line, reminds me of early modernist figure drawings and Picasso comes to mind. The facelessness – the absent features – contributes to the feeling of universal womanhood. Do you get a similar feeling? Editor: It is very perceptive to have drawn that parallel with early modernist drawings and the reference to Picasso's style which also speaks to its departure from earlier notions of idealization. Instead, the drawing presents something primal and exposed in its simplified form, its emphasis not on detail, but essence. Curator: I'm also intrigued by the deliberate, heavy strokes alongside the delicate lines. I feel the heavier strokes indicate how a female is coded. Editor: A pertinent observation. These lines evoke cultural memory and continuity in their symbolic rendering of womanhood, in line with earlier traditions of representing the body in art but filtered through a modernist lens. This interplay invites contemplation on changing cultural and psychological weight behind representations of female bodies in that period. Curator: The figure lacks identity beyond her gender. We see no face, therefore she can become every woman, she exists stripped down. Editor: Exactly, it makes one ponder what "identity" really means. It is such a succinct encapsulation of the artistic and cultural currents swirling during the mid-20th century! Curator: It does encapsulate them, leaving us to really wonder what an honest artistic impression feels like. Editor: A very thought provoking, indeed. Thank you.