Jackson Pollock
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IN 1944 Jackson Pollock, born in Cody, Wyoming, in 1912, held his first one-man exhibition at Art of This Century, the New York gallery of Miss Peggy Guggenheim, his most important early patron. It was apparent to a small group of museum officials, collectors and critics that a hardy and daring new talent had arrived on our art scene. During the past twelve years Pollock has steadily reinforced his position as a central figure in the latest resurgence of abstraction as a dominant force in painting here. The characteristics of early works like Guardians of the Secret--intense, nervous energy of line, tumultuous color and slashing, rich surfaces--have been retained. But Pollock has become more and more interested in developing a spontaneous release for his creative personality, eschewing formal values in favor of a quick calligraphy which is convoluted, labyrinthine--and fierce.
Pollock's detractors call his painting the "drip" or "spatter" school, and it is true that he often spreads large canvases on the floor and at them flings or dribbles raw pigment of varying colors. The fact remains that his technique, if unorthodox and utterly opposed to traditional concepts of the hand-painted oil, suits his idiosyncratic and dedicated purpose. More than that, it is inimitable, as disciples have learned to their sorrow. And Pollock returns at intervals to modeling with the brush, as in Ocean Greyness.
The vitality of Pollock's art is its frenzied conviction and its sensitivity to nuances of light and movement, space and balance. Its transcriptions of mood are varied and subtle. His imprint is unmistakable in all his works, but no two of them are really alike. To call these paintings decorations is a misreading of Pollock's intention and achievement. They are, on the contrary, pictures that actively and repeatedly engage the observer, suggesting allusions that trouble more often than they soothe.
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