Understanding the context of art

1. The Arts
How important is culture & context in
appreciating/evaluating Art? What knowledge should
precede value judgment or opinion on art? None? Some?
a lot?

2. Today
• activity with arts
• discussion
• short video

3. Activity
pp. 236-237 Green TOK
Textbook
6 Groups
Pick an image
Find the information
Grotte Chauvet, France, 32,000 BCE

4. What do you
think about
this piece? Do
you like it?

6. Number 5, 1948
• It It currently holds the record for the third highest
price ever paid for an individual painting.
• Sold by David Geffen for 140 million US$ in 2006
• Painted by Jackson Pollack

7. Card Players
by Paul Cezanne, bought by Qatar for $250 million

8. When will you
marry? by Paul
Gaugin
Also bought by Qatar for
$300 million

9. The Key
Early Work of Jackson Pollack

10. Image left of Pollack at work, 2 of his early paintings

11. White Light, 1953
Jackson Pollack

12. Pollock Quotes
• Every good painter paints what
he is.
• The painting has a life of its
own. I try to let it come through.
• It doesn't make much
difference how the paint is put
on as long as something has
been said. Technique is just a
means of arriving at a
statement.

13. Jackson Pollock
• Born & raised in Wyoming (west of US)
• Rough sort of fellow; struggled with alcoholism during his life
• Died at age 44 in an alcohol-related car accident (1956)
• He said, “I want to express my feelings rather than illustrate them.”
• Created (invented?) the drip style; first American artist to capture
public’s imagination; break with European traditions
• Art critics were impressed by Pollack; the public (some) were
initially shocked (as in “this is art?”)

14. Pollock in front of the canvas
demonstrated in the movie clip
Mural, 1943 (commissioned by art collector & dealer Peggy Guggenheim
for her NY apartment entrance; transitional painting for artist

15. arn more about how critics view this work of Pollack’s; listen to th

16. How does this knowledge, about
Pollock, his life, his work impact
your understanding of his art?
Why can’t you or I be a “drip” painter artist and be famous
for it? What does this tell us about art?