Untitled [reclining female nude with arms raised] 1955 - 1967

Richard Diebenkorn made this drawing of a reclining nude sometime in the 20th century with ink on paper. Look at these spare, confident lines! You can almost see him deciding where to put each one. I think of Diebenkorn in his studio, maybe listening to jazz, rapidly trying to capture the essence of the figure in front of him. He doesn’t fuss around with detail; instead he gives us these bold, almost architectural lines that define the form. See how he uses just a few strokes to suggest the curve of a breast, the arch of an arm? It reminds me of Matisse, another master of line. But there’s also something uniquely Diebenkorn here, a kind of relaxed, West Coast vibe. And I love how the negative space around the figure is just as important as the lines themselves, creating a sense of airiness and light. It’s like he's inviting us to fill in the blanks, to complete the picture with our own imagination. It’s a reminder that art is always a collaboration between the artist and the viewer, a shared experience of seeing and feeling.