Jackson Pollock

The world of modern art is very flexible and the techniques and results are different. When looking at an abstract picture at an art gallery, you can reach a sudden understanding of how art can be just about anything one wants it to be. The paintings of abstract artist Jackson Pollock are completely novel and original; they are beautiful, though crafted in an absolutely odd manner. “Jack the Dripper” proved that one does not have to draw immaculately to create a masterpiece.

Jackson Pollock was born in the small town of Cody, Wyoming in 1912. From his earliest years, Pollock showed a taste for art, as well as a rebellious character. He was expelled from two high schools in Los Angeles. At the age of seventeen, Pollock went to New York with his elder brother. This is where he started his studies under Thomas Hart Benton at the Arts Students League. Benton didn’t have much influence on Pollock’s work; however, he helped him develop his particular independent and passionate style.

During the period from 1938 to 1942, Jackson worked for a Mexican workshop that painted murals for the WPA Federal Art Project. That’s when his creativity was fostered. Pollock experimented by mixing different paint types and applied paints to large canvases in completely new ways. He created painting by means of synthetic paints originally meant for cars, which had never been used for professional art painting before. He used old stiffened brushers, sticks, or any other extraordinary tools as paint applicators. Pollock just spread his canvases on the studio floor and let the paint flow and drip from the chosen tools. His work style was named as “action painting” afterwards, because the whole body was literally in the painting, dripping and springing the paint from all directions. In 1956, Pollock received the nickname of “Jack the Dripper,” and this wording accurately interprets Pollock’s style.

In 1945, Jackson Pollock married his girlfriend, an abstract artist named Lee Krasner. They might have been happy and lived long lives together if not for the alcoholism problem that Pollock had suffered for the most of his life. In 1956, Jackson died in a traffic accident at the age of 44 due to drunk driving. After his death, Pollock was even more distinguished as a talented abstract painter, and his paintings became very popular.

Pollock’s paintings are highly valued nowadays, and his work style turned out to be a success. If you are talented and creative, you will find ways to express your “self” and stand out from the crowd.