Untitled [woman with cigarette seated beside her purse] 1955 - 1967

Richard Diebenkorn captured this sketch of a woman with ink on paper. The woman, seated with a cigarette and purse nearby, evokes a sense of mid-century domesticity and feminine identity. Diebenkorn, deeply influenced by the social and artistic milieu of California, presents us with a scene that feels both intimate and detached. The sketch's gestural lines and shading suggest a fleeting moment of contemplation. The cigarette, a common motif, hints at the sitter's potential anxieties or desires within her role. The woman's posture and the inclusion of the purse suggest a narrative beyond the visual frame, raising questions about her story, social standing, and the subtle complexities of her gendered experience. In exploring these ordinary scenes, Diebenkorn invites us to reflect on the emotional landscape of everyday life and the quiet narratives of women in postwar America.