Paul Jackson Pollock "When I'm in my painting, I'm not even aware of what I'm doing....the painting has a life of its own."

Jackson’s Early Life Jackson was born on January 28, 1912 in Cody, Wyoming. He attended Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles. He was encouraged in his early life to paint. Experienced Native American culture Studied under Thomas Hart Benton at the Art Students League of New York Married Lee Krasner who was another American painter

The Abstract Expressionist Jackson Pollock painted in a style known as Abstract Expressionism. Basically, it is a painting movement in which artists painted rapidly and with force to their huge canvases in an effort to show feelings and emotions. Appearances no longer look realistic. Although the art looks sloppy, it is actually highly planned. Introduced to liquid paint by Mexican muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros

Splatter Painting Jackson was known as an “action painter.” Instead of careful brush strokes, Jackson Pollock dripped, poured, and splattered paint “Pollock would lay giant canvas down on the floor of an old barn that he used for his studio. Then he would dip sticks into cans of paint and move all around the canvas, swooping and flicking paint one way and another. He built up layers and layers of color, used his fingers to drip and splatter paint, even dumped paint right out of the can.” Many of his paintings were huge. Some were as big as a classroom wall.

Pollock’s Studio in Springs, NY

Jackson’s Famous Paintings “Busy ladybugs can cover a lot of ground as they leap through your garden. The painting in our Master's Gallery today looks to me like the trails left by a hundred ladybugs hard at work. It was painted by the artist Jackson Pollock in 1953, and is called "Convergence.””

More Famous Paintings….. “Eyes in the Heat” 1946

“Composition” 1946

“Guardians of the Secret” 1943

“Autumn Rhythm” 1950

“Convergence” 1952

An Unappreciated Artist “Some people thought Pollock's paintings were just a big mess, but others looked carefully and discovered beautiful patterns and feelings in the chaos of immixed colors. Jackson Pollock is known today as a great master of American art.” "It is impossible to make a forgery of Jackson Pollock's work," Time magazine critic Robert Hughes claimed in 1982. It is a telling comment that gets to the heart of Pollock's authenticity as an artist."

Jackson’s Death and Legacy Jackson died on August 11, 1956. In November 2006 Pollock's "No. 5, 1948" became the world's most expensive painting, when it was sold for $140,000,000. Jackson will always be remembered as one of America’s greatest artists.

Pollock’s Grave in the Green River Cemetery

A Special Thanks to…. http://www.kidsart.com/IS/427.html http://www.artlex.com/ArtLex/a/abstractexpr.html http://www.kaliweb.com/jacksonpollock/art.htm www.images.google.com http://www.nga.gov/feature/pollock/painting1.shtm