The document discusses Abstract Expressionism, an art movement that began in the 1940s in New York City. It involved spontaneous and emotional painting styles like action painting and color field painting. Key artists included Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Lee Krasner, and Mark Rothko. They reacted against traditional art and sought to directly express inner emotions, often dealing with trauma from World War II. Though critics were initially hesitant, it came to influence many later art movements.

1. Jake Genrich, Eric Duprey, Jordan Diedrick

2.  Began in early 1940’s, and is still practiced
today
 Post World War II
 US emotionally traumatized by the war, and
have mixed feelings built up inside.

3.  Europe
 Paris
 New York City
 San Francisco Bay

4.  Cubism
▪ 1st Modern art movement
▪ Abstract qualities
 Surrealism
▪ Paintings without realistic traits
▪ Artist revealing feelings
▪ Spontaneous or automatic creation

5.  Energetic and dynamic
 Depicting movement
 Process of creation is emphasized
 No obvious focal point
 All driven from emotions
 Inspiring rather than beautiful

6.  Focus on color fields: especially bold color
 “Impulsive Art”
 Action painting
 No empty canvas
 Large Format
 Complex

7.  Artists seen as troublemakers and rebellious
 Provoked questions of “What is art?”
 Artwork from direct expression of artists’
conscious
 Emotional intensity from extreme feelings
due to the aftermath of the war (Trauma-
based)

8.  Hesitant to accept this artwork unlike any
other
 Critics didn’t approve at first because they
didn’t know how to respond
 Later became fans of the main 3 artists, but
looked down upon those following

9. “I can
control
the flow
of paint:
there is
no
accident.”

10.  American Artist, 1912-1956
 Nicknamed “Jack The Dripper”
 Studied painting in at Art’s Student League in
New York under Thomas Hart Benton
 Influenced by Mexican Muralists
 Created the “Dripping Technique”
 Federal Art Project
 Married Lee Krasner, another Abstract
Expressionist
 Alcohol issue

11.  Main techniques:
 Dripping
 Pouring paint from cans
 Using sticks, knives, sand, broken glass, and
other unusual materials
 Put the canvas on the floor and worked at all
angles
 Would stop working on a piece, and come back
to it later

12. Mural
1943

13. No. 5
1948

14. No. 1
(Lavender Mist)
1950

15. Autumn Rhythm
(No. 30)
1950

16. No. 28
1950

18.  Dutch American painter 1904-1997
 Studied at the Rotterdam Academy of Fine
Arts and Techniques
 Immigrated to the U.S. in 1926
 Worked illegally as a commercial
artist, window dresser, sign painter, and
carpenter in New York.
 Married to Elaine de Kooning who was also an
abstract expressionist.

19.  Main Techniques
 Main style was “Action-Painting”
 Spontaneous brushwork
 Used a lot of abstract shapes to represent real
world items
 Used human figures and landscapes as the
spotlight of his work
 Would stop working on a piece, and come back to
it later

20. Woman I
1950-52

21. The Marshes
1970

22. A Tree in
Naples
1960

23.  Female American Artist, 1928-2011
 Created artwork with freedom, spontaneity, and
complexity
 Her work tied nature and emotions together
 Critics loved and supported her work
 Learned from Jackson Pollock and Franz Kline at a
young age

24.  Main Techniques
 Invented the “Soak-Stain” technique
 Color Field Painting
 Enjoyed woodcut
 Altered Pollock’s drip techniques and applied them
to her art
 Gave her art a “flat” look with minimal depth
 Used natural landscapes for inspiration in her work

25. Mountains and
Sea
1952

26. The Bay
1963

27. Nature Abhors a
Vacuum
1973

28. Geisha
2003

29. MARK ROTHKO ROBERT MOTHERWELL
 Russian-American  American
 Denied the label of being an  Attempted to paint
“Abstract Expressionist” monumental, important things
 Played with color fields  Dramatic, bright brush strokes
 Simplistic style  Very emotional
 Played with color and light  More abstract

30. No. 61 Four Darks in Red
(Rust and Blue) 1958
1953

31. Elegy to the Spanish Republic Two Figures
No. 110 1958
1971

32.  Methods and themes remained influential
 Affected upcoming artists
 Led the way for movements such as pop art,
minimalism, etc