Tulips 1989

Richard Diebenkorn made this etching, Tulips, at an unknown date, using black ink on white wove paper. His chosen subject places him within a long tradition of floral still life, but in his abstraction of form, he broke with this tradition. Diebenkorn was associated with the Bay Area Figurative Movement. This was a post-war art movement in California that reacted against the dominance of abstract expressionism in New York. Bay Area artists like Diebenkorn retained figuration, but also incorporated the expressive brushwork of abstract painting. In this context, a seemingly conventional subject becomes a statement about artistic allegiances. The artist seems to be asking what the role of representation is, now that abstraction has demonstrated the expressive possibilities of pure form. Historians often consult exhibition reviews and artists’ statements to gain a richer understanding of the artistic debates of the time. Attending to this artwork reminds us that art always exists in a specific social context.