Seated Female Nude, Facing Left 1910

Curator: Welcome. Today, we’re looking at “Seated Female Nude, Facing Left,” a pencil drawing created around 1910 by Wilhelm Lehmbruck, a key figure in German Expressionism, now residing here at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Editor: There's a certain vulnerability to it, isn’t there? A woman drawn with such delicate, almost tentative lines. It feels incomplete, unfinished—as if the artist caught her in a moment of private reflection. Curator: Absolutely. Lehmbruck was deeply interested in the expressive potential of the human form. This work aligns with broader shifts occurring in artistic representations of women during this period. We see echoes of debates around women's roles, sexuality, and autonomy simmering just beneath the surface. Editor: I notice the contrast between the relatively defined lines of her body and the more obscured rendering of her face. It draws me in and creates some tension around where her gaze and thoughts might be directed. What's the context surrounding nudes like these and who had access to them? Curator: Well, that's part of a long and complex story! During the early 20th century, displaying and creating nude art, particularly drawings, became very popular. Drawings would circulate within artistic and intellectual circles, used both for study and display. Editor: I find her pose particularly compelling; it avoids the idealized, overtly sensual portrayals common throughout art history. It feels much more… human, I guess. A quiet rejection of objectification perhaps. Curator: Perhaps it does. Remember that, at that time, there were more nuanced interpretations of the female figure within avant-garde circles. Also, given Lehmbruck’s place within the Expressionist movement, consider how his artistic vision diverged from other portraits produced at the time and the institutions who displayed them. Editor: So, seeing her like this forces me to really consider my role as the viewer, the long history of gazing at female bodies in art, and how to approach images like this one with intention and awareness. Thank you for sharing. Curator: And thank you for engaging with these complexities. I hope our discussion sheds some light on the layers within “Seated Female Nude, Facing Left."