Pollock Paintings

Paul Jackson Pollock, known as Jackson Pollock, was an influential American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. He was born on January 28, 1912, in Cody, Wyoming, and grew up in Arizona and California. Pollock's unique style of drip painting has become one of his most famous contributions to modern art.

Pollock studied at the Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles but was expelled from two high schools by the time he was 15. He later moved to New York City, where he studied under Thomas Hart Benton at the Art Students League. Benton's rural American subject matter had little influence on Pollock's work, but his rhythmic use of paint and his fierce independence did make a lasting impact.

Throughout the 1930s, Pollock worked in a relative obscurity, experimenting with various styles and struggling with alcoholism. His first solo show was held at Peggy Guggenheim's Art of This Century gallery in New York in 1943. Guggenheim became one of Pollock's biggest supporters, providing him with a stipend and selling his paintings. Pollock's fame grew in the late 1940s, when he developed his signature drip technique, which involved using sticks, trowels, or knives to drip paint onto a canvas laid out on the floor. This method allowed him to control the flow of paint by using his whole body to create energetic and rhythmic compositions.

The peak of Pollock's fame and creativity was between 1947 and 1950, a period that art critic Harold Rosenberg later termed the 'drip period.' During this time, Pollock's work became more abstract, and he began to receive significant attention from the art world and the general public. His most famous paintings from this period include 'Autumn Rhythm (Number 30),' 'Blue Poles: Number 11, 1952,' and 'Convergence.' Despite his success, Pollock struggled with personal issues and his work started to decline in the early 1950s.

On August 11, 1956, Jackson Pollock died in a car crash in East Hampton, New York, at the age of 44. His sudden death was a shock to the art world and marked the end of one of the most groundbreaking careers in modern art. Pollock's legacy continues to influence contemporary artists, and his works are held in major collections worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Tate Gallery in London, and the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra.