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Mark Rothko (Abstract Expressionist artist)
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Jackson Pollock (Abstract Expressionist artist)
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Pollock undergoes Jungian psychotherapy (1938-41)
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Pollock observes American Indian sandpainting demonstrations (1940s)
Referring to his style of painting on the floor, Pollock stated, “I feel nearer, more a part of the painting, since this way I can walk round it, work from the four sides and literally be in the painting. This is akin to the methods of the Indian sand painters of the West." -
Pollock - Moon Woman
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Atomic Bombs - Hiroshima and Nagasaki
United States, with the consent of the United Kingdom, dropped nuclear weapons on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9 1945, respectively, during the final stage of World War II. The two bombings, which killed at least 129,000 people, remain the only use of nuclear weapons for warfare in history. -
Pollock marries American painter Lee Krasner
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Pollock - Shimmering Substance (MOMA) (76.3 x 61.6 cm)
With no hint of figuration, Shimmering Substance is one of Pollock's first completely nonrepresentational works. The artist squeezed the paint directly from the tube onto the canvas, then manipulated it with a palette knife, or maybe a finger. The painting is from his Sounds in the Grass series of seven canvases executed in a palette much lighter than in any of his previous work. Perhaps a response to the rural environment of East Hampton, where he had moved the previous year. -
Pollock - Full Fathom Five (MoMA) (129.2 x 76.5 cm)
Full Fathom Five is one of Pollock's first "drip" paintings. An assortment of detritus, from cigarette butts to coins and a key, are enfolded by the paint. Though many of these items are obscured, they contribute to the painting's dense surface and churning sensation. The title, quotes from Shakespeare's The Tempest, wherein Ariel describes a death by shipwreck: "Full fathom five thy father lies / Of his bones are coral made / Those are pearls that were his eyes." (MoMA) -
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Pollock's "drip paintings" (1947-1950)
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Pollock dies in car crash
On August 11, 1956, at 10:15 pm, Pollock died in a single-car crash in his convertible while driving under the influence of alcohol. One of the passengers, Edith Metzger, was also killed in the accident, which occurred less than a mile from Pollock's home. The other passenger, Ruth Kligman, an artist and Pollock's mistress, survived
