Untitled [woman arranging her hair before a frame] 1955 - 1967

Editor: This is an untitled pencil drawing by Richard Diebenkorn, created sometime between 1955 and 1967. It shows a woman arranging her hair in front of what looks like a window frame. There's a vulnerability to the figure; the quick, sketchy lines really emphasize that feeling. What strikes you most about this drawing? Curator: The enduring image of a woman attending to her hair is really the symbol of intimate moments captured across centuries of art. Look at the visual vocabulary here - the lines barely containing the form, creating this sense of almost frantic energy. Don’t you feel that the window is almost a mirror here? Editor: I see what you mean; the way she's positioned does suggest reflection. How does that change our interpretation? Curator: It shifts it inward. The window, acting as a mirror, reflects not just her physical form, but a deeper self-contemplation. The act of arranging hair becomes ritualistic, charged with meaning, almost archetypal, echoing the symbolic weight carried by such images in mythology and art history. Notice how her gaze, although unseen, dominates. Does that suggest a moment of performance? Editor: Performance even when alone? It definitely feels staged somehow, yet raw. I hadn’t really thought about how deeply ingrained this image is in our cultural memory. Curator: Indeed, Diebenkorn taps into something fundamental. The beauty is how these raw, honest lines evoke layers of psychological weight. Consider the space itself: compressed and undefined yet strangely intimate. Editor: This conversation has really given me a fresh perspective on the power of such seemingly simple images! Curator: And I'm reminded how important it is to see echoes of history, of lived experience, resonating in art.