Richard Diebenkorn

1922-1993 · American · Abstract Expressionism, Bay Area Figurative Movement

Auction record: $46.41M

Recollections of a Visit to Leningrad, 1965 · Christie's, New York

Biography

Richard Diebenkorn (1922 to 1993) is the central painter of postwar California. He moved from abstract work in Albuquerque, Urbana and Berkeley to the Bay Area Figurative style of the late 1950s and early 1960s, then returned to abstraction in 1967 with the Ocean Park series, more than 140 large canvases of luminous colour and architectural lines made in Santa Monica. Ocean Park paintings are the backbone of his market and have repeatedly made eight figure prices. His auction record is $46.4 million for Recollections of a Visit to Leningrad (1965), sold at Christie's New York in November 2023. Supply is thin and most major works sit in museums, which supports prices when top canvases appear.

Market

Liquidity: Medium

Museums

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York
Art Institute of Chicago
Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Sources

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