Berkeley #22 1954

Curator: Richard Diebenkorn’s “Berkeley #22,” painted in 1954, presents a fascinating exploration in oil paint of space and form. Editor: My first thought is quietude. It has the calm of a muted landscape, almost melancholy with those grey and blue tones dominating the composition. Curator: Considering Diebenkorn’s move towards abstraction in the 1950s, this piece is interesting. The influence of Abstract Expressionism is visible, particularly in the application of paint and the gestural quality, but it hints at landscape, referencing his surroundings. How do you read those spatial dynamics? Editor: I find it hard to separate it from its historical context. Post-war America searching for new modes of expression, and, within art history, abstract expressionism emerges as the perfect form to represent what is unpresentable after trauma. With the location specified in the title, do you read it as representing place, belonging and geographical rootedness? Is that what ties him to landscape, conceptually? Curator: Absolutely. Looking at its institutional context, Abstract Expressionism’s increasing value through critics, collectors, and eventually the art market helped redefine the landscape of postwar art. In Diebenkorn's case, this opened the door to recognition and his position as an important painter from California. His departure from figuration represents a shift toward individualism, arguably rejecting collective narratives in favour of his own exploration. Editor: Right, and those individual choices still speak to our current social landscape, I think. He worked in a field that even today presents enormous barriers for gender, racial, or class diversity. Considering those power structures that affect how artwork is received makes this an important touchstone in discussions of representation in art history. I can’t see these blues and ochres without thinking about that bigger picture, that complex history. Curator: Precisely. I think engaging with “Berkeley #22” through both aesthetic and historical lenses offers us a deeper appreciation not only of the artist's vision but also of the socio-political influences that shape our understanding of art and its role in society. Editor: Yes. The painting invites us to delve into history and to ponder its reflection on modern intersectional challenges that persist today.