Untitled [female nude reclining on sofa] 1955 - 1967

This is an untitled sketch by Richard Diebenkorn, made with pencil on paper. It's all about the dance of the hand, isn't it? There's such a lightness of touch here, a real sense of discovery as he works out the planes of the figure. Look at the way he uses these scribbly lines to define the form, almost like he's feeling his way around it. I love the energy of the marks around her torso and legs, it's like he's mapping the contours of her body, capturing its weight and volume. I am especially drawn to the negative space and the almost clumsy drawing of the vessel behind the reclining figure. This is a drawing of someone looking, an act of intimate looking at a moment in time. It reminds me a bit of Matisse in its simplicity and directness. Both artists share that ability to distill a complex subject down to its most essential elements. In the end, it's not about perfection, but about the beauty of the search.