Jackson Pollock

By Nate Giess

Vital Statistics

• Born January 28th, 1912

• Died August 11th, 1956

• Male• White, American

Personal Background

• Started drinking age 15, warped art even in young years when it could be recognized as a landscape

• Went to New York to study under Thomas Hart Benton, who taught him to focus on the journey, and to liberally use paint

• Developed romantic regionalism style in NY• Peggy Guggenheim finds his work promising

and begins to pay him a monthly stipend• Meets his future wife, who is also a painter

Key Historical Events

• Surrealism began to move him away from landscapes and more into colorful paintings still done with a brush

• Abstract expressionism made him more spontaneous and paint automatically, which is subconsciously

• Great Depression combined with alcohol made many of his paintings very depressed and dark, some grotesque and disturbing

Stylistic Traits• Splatters and drips

paint• Always has black and

white in paintings, regardless of other colors included

• Paint and colors are evenly dispersed throughout the whole canvas

• Numbers paintings

Stylistic Traits

• Splatters and drips paint

• Always has black and white in paintings, regardless of other colors included

• Paint and colors are evenly dispersed throughout the whole canvas

• Numbers paintingsNumber 8, 1949

Stylistic Traits

• Splatters and drips paint

• Always has black and white in paintings, regardless of other colors included

• Paint and colors are evenly dispersed throughout the whole canvas

• Numbers paintingsOne: Number 31

Questions?