Untitled No. 19 1981

Editor: Here we have Richard Diebenkorn’s “Untitled No. 19” from 1981, made with mixed media including acrylic paint. It feels simultaneously bold and tentative, if that makes sense. There’s a real dynamism between the solid colors and the implied geometry. What's your take? Curator: What strikes me is how Diebenkorn, known for his representational work, particularly the *Ocean Park* series, veers into a more abstract realm here. Knowing his context, this untitled piece becomes more than just color and form, but part of a conversation about the established institutions of American art in the late 20th century and how he navigates between public expectation and personal exploration. Editor: How so? Curator: Well, Abstract Expressionism had become canonized, right? Yet Diebenkorn revisits its principles, but on his own terms. It’s like he’s questioning what abstraction could mean *after* its institutionalization. Editor: I see. The almost crude application of paint resists any sense of slickness or easy consumption, perhaps echoing that very tension? Curator: Exactly. And the bright, almost clashing colours - what do they suggest to you? Could those hues represent something deeper about America at the time, maybe the bold pronouncements and fractured realities of the Reagan era? Editor: That’s a really interesting connection that I hadn't considered! Thinking about how the colours interact within the geometric composition, I think this shows a kind of discord but with moments of visual pleasure at the same time. Curator: Absolutely, a negotiation. We're seeing the artist working within and against societal structures, painting his own history onto the canvas. Editor: Well, I never would've considered Diebenkorn's exploration of Abstraction against the political backdrop of the '80s! Thanks!