Joan Semmel's "Figure" is an intaglio etching that exemplifies the artist's commitment to depicting the female body with unflinching directness and formal complexity. Through the precise linear language of etching, Semmel constructs volumetric forms that challenge conventional representations of the female nude by presenting bodies from unconventional viewpoints and with assertive physicality. The work reflects Semmel's broader artistic project of reclaiming the female figure as a subject of artistic authority rather than passive objectification.