Ocean Park, No. 6

Richard Diebenkorn, Ocean Park, No. 6, 1968, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Arthur J. Levin in memory of his beloved wife Edith, 1999.17, © 1968, Richard Diebenkorn
Copied Richard Diebenkorn, Ocean Park, No. 6, 1968, oil on canvas, 91 3471 34 in. (233.2182.3 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Arthur J. Levin in memory of his beloved wife Edith, 1999.17, © 1968, Richard Diebenkorn

Artwork Details

Title
Ocean Park, No. 6
Date
1968
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
91 3471 34 in. (233.2182.3 cm)
Copyright
© 1968, Richard Diebenkorn
Credit Line
Gift of Arthur J. Levin in memory of his beloved wife Edith
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Keywords
  • Abstract
Object Number
1999.17

Artwork Description

In Ocean Park, No. 6, overlapping planes of color suggest Richard Diebenkorn's view from above as he flew over Southern California, noting the "ghosts of former tilled fields [and] patches of land being eroded." The progression evokes a flattened topographical image of dry hills descending to roads, sand, and water. With this monumental painting, which measures nearly eight feet high, Diebenkorn upends the traditional landscape format from a long horizontal to a vertical. Ocean Park, No. 6 is an early painting in a series Diebenkorn went on to pursue in more than one hundred artworks.