Untitled [woman resting in an armchair] 1955 - 1967

Richard Diebenkorn made this sketch of a woman in an armchair with graphite on paper. The energy of the drawing comes from its pentimenti, the visible traces of the artist’s hand as he seeks out the form. I can imagine Diebenkorn looking, then looking again. He's trying to get it right, adjusting and readjusting the lines. You can see it in the way the lines of the chair wobble a little, how they aren’t perfectly straight or continuous. It reminds me of my own studio practice - sometimes it feels like the mistakes are more interesting than what I originally intended. And it's in those moments of uncertainty that something new emerges. Diebenkorn reminds me that painting is a process of ongoing inquiry and discovery. It’s in the not knowing, in the questioning, that a painting finds its voice.