Jackson Pollock was an influential American painter known for his unique "drip and splash" technique where he would pour and drip paint onto canvases laid on the floor. He struggled with drawing and painting traditionally but found his style through this action painting method. Pollock's abstract works came to be highly influential on modern art and he is now considered one of the most important American artists, though his work was controversial during his lifetime. After his death at age 44, Pollock's paintings began selling for millions at auction.

1. Andy WarholAndy Warhol
(1928-1987)
Art is anything

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3. Jim Dine Hearts
•Dine likes to choose a single theme or subject and work in a
series. HEARTS
He was born June 16, 1935.
He is an American painter, sculptor, printmaker, illustrator,
performance artist. He is an American pop artist.

4. JACKSON POLLOCK
(1912-1956)

5. An overview of
Jackson Pollock’s style
• Considered one of the most
Influential American Painters of all
time
• Abstract painting
• Expressionism
represents
emotions, feelings
& ideas.

6. Pollock’s Artistic Challenges & Struggles...
• Despite Pollock’s love of creating art, he was not particularly
strong at drawing or painting.
• He was often frustrated and exhibited rebellious behavior.
• Pollock often produced unfinished work where his sadness
was easily detected
self portrait 1930
by Jackson Pollock

7. The Great Depression leads to amazing
opportunity for American Artists
• During The Great Depression, there were very few jobs
available in America.The US Government established the
Federal Art Project to employ out-of-work artists.
• From 1938-1942, Pollock participated in this program,
creating art work to appear in public places such as school,
hospitals, banks & libraries, in exchange for a salary.

8. Pollock finds his style
• By 1940, Pollock was painting completely abstract - the term “drip &
splash” was coined because of his art.
• Instead of using a traditional easel, he would affix the canvas to the
floor
• Paint would drip, or be poured by use of sticks, knives, sand, broken
glass and anything else of interest to Pollock
“On the floor I am more at ease. I feel
nearer, more part of the painting since
this way I can walk around it, work the
four sides and literally be in the
painting.”-Jackson Pollock

9. Number 8, 1949Eyes and Heat 1946
Pollock at Work
Some of Pollock’s
Action Paintings
Convergence, 1952
“The method of
painting is the natural
growth out of a need. I
want to express my
feelings rather than
illustrate them.
Technique is just a
means of arriving at a
statement.... I can
control the flow of
paint: there is no
accident, just as there
is no beginning and no
end.” -Jackson
Pollock

10. Pollock & Krasner Studio
The Pollock
Krasner Studio
is still open for
tours in East
Hampton, NY
every summer.

11. Later Years of Jackson Pollock
• Pollock began to number his work (in no particular order) instead of
naming each painting
• He didn’t create much art the last few years of his life because he
believed he was no longer touching people
• Jackson Pollock died in 1956, he was 44 years old.
An example to
show the size
of canvas
Pollock used

12. Number 4, 1950Shimmering Substance, 1946
Lavender Mist, 1950
Number 19, 1948

13. What the critics say...
• Art Historians have said, “Pollock’s paintings are meant to make you think of a wild tribe
dance, or a piece of music.”
• Aug. 8, 1949, Life Magazine ran an article that inquired, "Jackson Pollock: Is he the greatest
living painter in the United States?"
• Art critic Clement Greenberg said, “he took one look at the painting and realized that Jackson
was the greatest painter this country has produced."
• Artist Alfonso Ossorio said, "Here I saw a man who had both broken all the traditions of the
past and unified them, who had gone beyond cubism, beyond Picasso and surrealism,
beyond everything that had happened in art....his work expressed both action and
contemplation."
• Time Magazine mocked Pollock’s work by calling him “Jack the Dripper”
• Art Critic Robert Cotes said “mere unorganized explosions of random energy, and therefore
meaningless.”

14. • During Pollock’s lifetime, he never made much money from his
painting and never showed his work outside of America.
• However, after he died, Pollock’s art has been selling for millions all
over the world.
• In 2006, one of Pollock’s painting’s “No. 5, 1948” sold for 140 million
dollars, setting a new record for the most money ever paid for a
painting.
• Museum of Modern Art in New York City has the largest collection of
Jackson Pollock’s work on display today
No. 5, 1948
Jackson Pollock’s art today