The first time I saw a painting by Richard Diebenkorn was in November of 2013. We were visiting Drew’s family in Saint Louis and we went to the Saint Louis Art Museum. They have a great collection, and guess what? It’s free to visit every single day.
The photograph of Ocean Park 86 on the left (that I snapped with my iPhone), doesn’t even begin to do it justice. But I didn’t take the photo as a keepsake. I took it as a reminder to learn more about this artist who produced 145 abstract paintings for a series titled after the Santa Monica/Venice area neighborhood that he first lived in after leaving the Bay Area – the Ocean Park Series.
Too bad that I didn’t know about him when I lived in Santa Monica! He died in 1993, about 10 years before I moved there, but it would have been cool to explore the area knowing what I know now.
I think that I love the construction and color palettes of Richard Diebenkorn’s paintings equally. I like seeing bits of his process peeking through the layers of paint. His color palettes calm and energize me at the same time. And of course there’s the whole Southern California vibe that they invoke, and that I’m obsessed with.
Have a great weekend! xoxo
Additional images via Artsy
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