Untitled [front view of nude with left hand behind her back] [recto] 1955 - 1967

Richard Diebenkorn made this untitled nude drawing with charcoal on paper. The faceless figure could be seen as a direct challenge to the traditional portrait, calling into question the viewer's gaze and expectations of how the body should be represented. Made in the USA during the mid-20th century, this image enters into dialogue with debates about the role of women in society and the pervasive presence of the female nude in art history. The figure's body is rendered with loose lines, giving the work a casual, unfinished quality. The composition of the image could be a conscious departure from the highly polished, idealized nudes prevalent in academic art of the past. To understand the artwork better, we might consult contemporary sources, such as feminist art criticism, to reveal how social norms may have been challenged by Diebenkorn. The meaning of art is always contingent on its social and institutional context.