Influence Of Patronage On Jackson Pollock

Though, throughout this time period, “the great majority of Americans disliked or even despised modern art,” it was an essential art movement in the 1950s and 1960s, and the “CIA fostered and promoted American Abstract Expressionist painting around the world for more than 20 years,” creating a meaningful impact on the outcome of the Cold War (Saunders). “Abstract Expressionism stood for, above all else,

If people were asked to make a mental picture of a painter working on his work of art, most of them would describe it as a person with a big canvas on a stand in front of them painting the subject which they are looking at. There were two major differences in Pollock's approach to his art compared to other artists. The first major difference was that Jackson painted on the floor. The second difference was that he used a stick instead of a brush. They would say that because they are all not exposed to different types and styles of painting. For those people who do not know much about art wouldn't know the meaning of the painting or how it was created. In some instances people say to themselves, "you call this art, my little brother could

Pollock is known as one of the most influential scholars of modern, avant garde, postmodern and contemporary art. “Griselda Pollock continually challenges the dominant museum models of art and history that have been so excluding of women’s artistic contributions and articulates the complex relations between femininity, modernity, psychoanalysis and representation.” (Boundless, 2015) She is known as a major influence in feminist theory, gender studies and feminist art history. Griselda Pollock’s approach to art history and criticism utilises the central tenets of Marxism critical approach to society and culture, extending the existing framework of historical materialism to compose new feminist analyses of sexuality and gender identity. Pollock embraces the Marxist assertion that society is structured by relations of material inequality, but contends that society is equally structured by sexual inequality and gender divisions. Pollock determines that the exclusion and denigration of female artists in art history is a product of the patriarchal structure of bourgeois ideology. Despite women being involved in art making, twentieth century art history continues to define the artist and the artwork as a masculine phenomenon. As art and culture is marketed and produced by a culture industry that exists to perpetuate and reinforce bourgeois culture, hegemonic art history and criticism actively works to justify this

In this review, I will analyse The Legacy of Jackson Pollock (1959), written by Allan Kaprow and review how he discusses the work of Jackson Pollock, relating this to my own experimentation within my practice, and later considering the social advancements in art and how it effects Pollock’s work.

Jackson Pollock was a legendary, novel, abstract expressionist who has created numerous paintings through his drip-style, action painting technique (Goodnough, 2012). Theosophical influence arose from Phillip Guston and Thomas Hart Benton, while in the early stages of the artist’s life. Muralists, such as Jose Clemente Orozco and Diego Rivera were also admired and studied by Pollock. He was captivated by the unorthodox techniques of David Alfaro Siqueiros which contributed to the abstract style of Jackson Pollock (Solomon, 1987).

When Pollock was witnessed painting, people would refer to him as ‘dancing across the canvas’. Each painting was like a dance routine and he let the painting guide his hand around and around in circles until it was completed. Pollock did not like for his audience to be able to identify any trace of academic artistic quality. He was even notorious for signing his paintings by pressing the palm of his hand down onto the wet paint. It was efficient for him, especially since in his ‘drip’ paintings he would never lift a brush. What this did to his work then was no longer did he display a replica of a scene or person like most landscape and portrait artists, but instead he displayed his fluent motion.

This essay analyses the aesthetic and ideological underpinnings of the Modernist artwork, Impression, Sunrise of Claude Monet. The artwork and Impressionism is considered to be a visual articulation of the avant-garde and the latter statement is explained. References to the writings of Charles Harrison, Clement Greenberg and Wilhelm Worringer is used to theorise the aesthetics of modernity.

The innovative and passionate presence in both Jackson Pollock’s and Wassily Kandinsky avant-garde paintings exemplifies the redefinition of boundaries throughout their art making practices. Both artists challenged traditions both materially and conceptually using innovative and diverse approaches to materials and techniques when painting. Wassily Kandinsky goes against traditions and academies to create vivid, sensual and symbolic large-scale semi abstract expressionist oil paintings in a heightened state of mind. Many artworks of his convey bright and cheerful spontaneous colours that make the audience fully consumed within his works due to hypnotic and distorted semi realist shapes. Consequently, Jackson Pollock also goes against

Autumn Rhythm (Number 30) is Jackson Pollock’s most famous piece that shows action painting, a defining technique of Abstract Expressionism, and his innovative drip painting technique he developed in 1940. Pollock created his piece by placing the canvas on the floor, then he used brushes, or even his hands and started to drip the paint on the surface. His distinct technique of painting makes him absorbed in the creation of his art piece without being aware of what he is doing. Therefore, Pollock is free from realism and from his own self through painting because it relieves his anxiety now that he is focused only on his art. Pollock’s work is classified as non-objective because Autumn Rhythm (Number 30) cannot be related to any recognizable object from real life, so he is not constraint by reality, but goes outside the box as if liberated to soar free and paint from his

Men are supposed to act strong and emotionless, a historical expectation in American society. Post- World War II fear and alienation haunted American men (Perchuk 1995:35). Pollock’s method to alleviate fear through his paintings is the response to the historical happenings during World War II. The war mentality decreased masculinity as the men were able express “weak” emotions.

First, Pollock was a leader. Just like W.E.B Du Bois was able to set the limits of what a secular hero is to people of color, Pollock was able to set up a record to the future of American artwork as well as international artwork (2:22). As a leader he was able to inspire younger painters known as the Abstract Expressionists (4:02). The ability to lead is one of the qualities a secular hero has, yet, in order to lead, a hero must stand up for something.

Pollock is known as one of the most influential scholars of modern, avant garde, postmodern and contemporary art. “Griselda Pollock continually challenges the dominant museum models of art and history that have been so excluding of women’s artistic contributions and articulates the complex relations between femininity, modernity, psychoanalysis and representation.” (Boundless, 2015) She is known as a major influence in feminist theory, gender studies and feminist art history. Griselda Pollock’s approach to art history and criticism utilises the central tenets of Marxism critical approach to society and culture, extending the existing framework of historical materialism to compose new feminist analyses of sexuality and gender identity. Pollock embraces the Marxist assertion that society is structured by relations of material inequality, but contends that society is equally structured by sexual inequality and gender divisions. Pollock determines that the exclusion and denigration of female artists in art history is a product of the patriarchal structure of bourgeois ideology. Despite women being involved in art making, twentieth century art history continues to define the artist and the artwork as a masculine phenomenon. As art and culture is marketed and produced by a culture industry that exists to perpetuate and reinforce bourgeois culture, hegemonic art history and criticism actively works to justify this

In 1939, Jackson Pollock entered psychotherapy for his alcoholism. For him, the doctors saw that producing artwork could serve as a means of therapy for his problem with alcohol. His alcoholism would later come back to haunt him and his works in later years and become the cause of his ultimate demise.

Taking following extreme cases of abstraction, when speaking of Pollock’s work such as his ”Autumn Rhythm” (1950), we realize how the visual formed is fully based on science and gravity that permits the dripping and pouring of the paint on the horizontal canvas. But, by walking around/on the canvas we can argue Greenberg’s analysis and suppose that the painter possibly connects with it, he gets drowned in the act and merges inside the painting while mechanically pouring paint on the canvas. This means that even though the painter tries to focus on the flatness of the painting rather than the content and is physically detached from the canvas, this focus cannot erase an emotional

Abstract Expressionism is making its comeback within the art world. Coined as an artist movement in the 1940’s and 1950’s, at the New York School, American Abstract Expressionist began to express many ideas relevant to humanity and the world around human civilization. However, the subject matters, contributing to artists, were not meant to represent the ever-changing world around them. Rather, how the world around them affected the artist themselves. The works swayed by such worldly influences, become an important article within the artists’ pieces. Subjectively, looking inward to express the artist psyche, artists within the Abstract Expressionism movement became a part of their paintings. Making the paintings more of a representation