Untitled [standing female nude leaning against wall] 1955 - 1967

Editor: This is an untitled drawing by Richard Diebenkorn, created sometime between 1955 and 1967. It's a pencil drawing of a standing female nude. It feels almost like a sketch, capturing a fleeting moment. What do you see in this piece? Curator: For me, it's about the labor embedded in those pencil strokes. Think about Diebenkorn, the physical act of him pressing that graphite onto paper, over and over. The hatching and cross-hatching, they're not just about depicting light and shadow; they're evidence of time spent, a deliberate process of building form. What kind of paper do you imagine he might have used and why? Editor: Maybe a textured paper? To grab the pencil and give it that almost broken line feel. Curator: Precisely! It makes me consider the social context of drawing at that time. It wasn't always considered "high art," like painting. Drawings were often preparatory, steps in a larger process. But Diebenkorn elevates the act of drawing, almost foregrounding the medium itself. This elevates it. This isn’t a quick sketch. It’s a meditation on the female form but also the *process* of representation. Editor: That's fascinating. I never thought about it in terms of the labor and elevation of drawing. Curator: Consider the paper's texture, the hardness of the pencil, the social history of nudes. These all come together. Diebenkorn is participating in the tradition, using available and affordable materials, while maybe subtly commenting on it all. Do you think the “archival material” watermark in the corner influences our perspective today? Editor: Yes, knowing it is archival underscores its importance. I’ll think about the materials more consciously going forward! Curator: Excellent. It’s all intertwined, isn't it?