Interior with a Book
Artist
Richard Diebenkorn
(American, 1922 - 1993)
Date1959
MediumOil on canvas
DimensionsOverall: 70 × 64 inches (177.8 × 162.56 cm)
Credit LineGift of the Friends of Art
Object numberF63-15
Signedl.l. (in black): "R.D. 59"
On View
On viewGallery Location
- L2
Collections
DescriptionCorner interior view of room with two large picture windows meeting at left corner partition; terrestrial view outside done in greens, yellows, and oranges; blue sky. Interior: table on which is an open book left and plate right; chair in left corner; interior done in reds, blues, and pastels.Gallery LabelRichard Diebenkorn worked in two styles-gestural realism, as in Interior with a Book, and complete abstraction, as in the Ocean Park Series.
In Interior with a Book, Diebenkorn integrates flat areas of color with more realistic passages suggesting three-dimensional space. The right two-thirds of the canvas present a landscape, sky and interior space in terms of an abstract pattern of horizontal bands of color. Perspective, or the illusion of receding space, is achieved through the intersection of these horizontals with the diagonal lines of the window frame. The careful placement of a chair, book and trees enhances this illusion of depth.
The empty chair and open book suggest the absence or eventual presence of a solitary figure, creating a mood of quiet anticipation.
In Interior with a Book, Diebenkorn integrates flat areas of color with more realistic passages suggesting three-dimensional space. The right two-thirds of the canvas present a landscape, sky and interior space in terms of an abstract pattern of horizontal bands of color. Perspective, or the illusion of receding space, is achieved through the intersection of these horizontals with the diagonal lines of the window frame. The careful placement of a chair, book and trees enhances this illusion of depth.
The empty chair and open book suggest the absence or eventual presence of a solitary figure, creating a mood of quiet anticipation.
Copyright© Richard Diebenkorn Foundation
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