

I'm working on a painting at the
Malibu Pier. I wanted to capture
the quirky angles and the diagonals
of the stairways located at the end
of the pier. It is a view from a rooftop, looking down the stairs toward the main level of the pier. The picture plane has strong compositional elements, with an abstract quality that I like.

My first thought when I saw this spot, was that the lines of the architecture are similar to the structure of a Richard Diebenkorn painting from his Ocean Park abstract series. While my painting has developed in a realistic manner, the underlying drawing has a kind of abstract geometry. There is a sense of tension in the lines of perspective and the descent of the stairs.
It is a lively and beautiful place - it feels like standing on the bow of a ship.

I am fond of older architecture, and the Malibu Pier has a history going back over 100 years. It was built in 1904 for the Adamson/Rindge family who once owned 20 miles of this coastline. In the 1940's the pier was extended and the twin buildings were added.


Richard Diebenkorn said, "All paintings start out of a mood, out of a relationship with things or people, out of a complete visual impression.”
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All images Copyright Suzanne Simson 2019
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