Untitled [reclining female nude wearing a necklace] 1955 - 1967

Curator: We are looking at Richard Diebenkorn's "Untitled [reclining female nude wearing a necklace]" from between 1955 and 1967, rendered in ink on paper. What's your initial reaction to the piece? Editor: Immediately, I'm struck by its vulnerability. There's an unfinished quality that communicates a deep self-awareness. I wonder, how did this artist, during this period, contribute to our understanding of the female nude? Curator: Let’s first consider Diebenkorn’s formal approach. The artwork’s impact hinges on its linework: economy and clarity defining its visual power. Look how a single stroke captures the curve of a hip or the slope of a shoulder. This distillation provides structure to the form. Editor: True, but beyond its lines, the subject is the core. Her pose—relaxed yet posed—evokes a kind of ennui, that feeling of languor that permeates post-war society and a re-examination of women’s roles in particular. The necklace becomes less ornament and more an object that draws your eye to the neck—a point of focus. Curator: Interesting—I hadn't thought of it that way. To me, the necklace suggests another formal investigation, like that of rendering different material properties using similar tools. Editor: I see it also speaks volumes about how women were represented—and how they represented themselves—within this socio-economic environment. The very act of reclining as the subject gives us cause to ask where the viewer is positioned, how gender norms function. Who gets to recline and who gets to look? Curator: Certainly, readings evolve. Still, Diebenkorn is remarkable because he captures so much with so little, his precise strokes hinting at underlying form. His skill brings clarity and unity to the composition. Editor: Absolutely. The dialogue here – between the artist and model, and also us as the audience, remains fascinating and thought-provoking through time. It feels incredibly of its time and somehow simultaneously outside of it. Curator: Indeed, there is an enduring tension in how we see the subject – a formal arrangement, sure, but never without social awareness.