Mondrian’s First Diamond Compositions
THE RECENT EXHIBITION “MONDRIAN: THE Diamond Compositions” at the National Gallery of Art in Washington occasioned the publication of a major catalogue in which the curator, E.A. Carmean, Jr., discussing all known diamond-shaped paintings and related drawings, not only asserts the prominent place of the diamond compositions in the evolution of Mondrian’s style, but also clarifies his working method to an extent unparalleled in earlier discussions of specific paintings.1 Of particular interest is the discussion of the changes in some of Mondrian’s works, for example in his last painting, Victory