Untitled [female nude seated in armchair] 1955 - 1967

Richard Diebenkorn made this untitled ink drawing of a seated nude sometime in the mid-twentieth century. The monochrome palette throws the emphasis onto the artist’s process, and the decisions involved in each rapid, confident mark. Look how Diebenkorn uses the brush to suggest both shadow and form. Notice the thin, watery application of ink across the figure’s chest, in contrast with the thicker, more opaque marks of the chair. The two long strokes defining the chair’s left leg seem to simultaneously describe the object, and threaten to collapse it into abstraction. The way he models the figure’s head is reminiscent of a sculptor building up volume in clay. There’s a real sense of energy in this piece, a feeling that it was made quickly, without hesitation. In some ways it reminds me of Matisse’s line drawings – simple, direct, and full of life. It shows how much you can do with so little.