Richard Diebenkorn (1922-1993), is largely remembered for his luminous Ocean Park paintings from the 60s and 70s. Those California landscapes epitomize ethereal grace and subtlety, and are some of the definitive abstract painting of that era.

Miller 22, 1951

But a new exhibition in New York is showing another side of the great painter. From Jan. 25 to April 5, the Grey Gallery is presenting rarely seen early work from 1950-52, when Diebenkorn was a graduate student at the University of New Mexico. Sponsored by the G.I. Bill, Diebenkorn moved to Albuquerque, embraced the desert landscape, and produced a number of rich canvases that are surprisingly mature. He favors a palette of rust and red, and dense compositions interrupted by bold snaking lines. And we see hints of Diebenkorn's training as a cartographer in a series of small ink drawings -- the expressive lines could be a cross between abstracted maps and ambiguous cartoons.

Untitled (Albuquerque), 1950

Diebenkorn said he chose New Mexico because he "liked the look of the place." Judging from this body of work -- both lyrical and expansive -- it's easy to see the attraction. --DAVID COGGINS

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