Touched Red (working proof 9) 1991

Richard Diebenkorn made this print, Touched Red (working proof 9), without specifying when. But I bet he used a mix of printmaking techniques, probably a combination of etching and aquatint to achieve its layered effects. Looking at this print, I can almost feel Diebenkorn in the studio, wrestling with the plate, adding and subtracting, trying to find that perfect balance. What was he thinking, when he laid down those pale vertical lines against the muted beige ground? It's a surface built from subtle marks, a delicate patchwork of color and texture. The paint is thin, almost transparent in places, allowing the under layers to peek through. That one bold stroke of red down the left—that’s like a jolt of energy, a defiant gesture that pulls everything together. For Diebenkorn, as for many of us, painting was an act of slow looking and constant adjustment. We can see him thinking and feeling his way through the process. It’s all part of this ongoing conversation that artists have across time, inspiring each other to see and feel the world in new ways. And it’s in that uncertainty, that ambiguity, that the real magic happens.