Original Drawing “Untitled—Shirtless Seated Male” [SOLD]

Gorman drew this pencil drawing of a seated male with pants and no shirt on December 29, 1968 at the time he was living in San Francisco. I showed the drawing to Gorman around 1995. He remembered drawing it but did not recall who the model was or to whom he gave it. He speculated he gave it to the model. I purchased it from an estate in San Francisco in the mid-1980s and it was probably the estate of the model.

The drawing is signed and dated in lower right, and is framed using archival materials.

R.C. Gorman was reservation raised (Navajo Nation). He received a scholarship from the Navajo Tribe in 1958 to study in Mexico at the University of the Americas. The strong influence of Mexican artists Tamayo, Rivera, and Zuniga is evident in his work. The classic simplicity of Zuniga's work is so apparent in the drawings of Navajo women by Gorman.

He was probably the most famous Diné (Navajo) artist. He was charming, flamboyant and fascinating. He had spent most of his adult life in Taos, New Mexico, where he lived and worked. He was extremely talented and could execute a pastel drawing that appeared to be effortless, but was a masterpiece of technique.