Born in 1912, Jackson Pollock is a renowned American legendary art critic. His dazzling art magic has been recognized by different personalities all around the universe. The art genius from a family of five brothers was married to Lee Krasner. Pollock has been well known for his starling performance in painting, which has influenced many people differently. Some of his influential pieces of art include Mural, Untitled, and The She-Wolf amongst others.
In fact, Mural, which is one of his unique pieces of art, was a design for his entrance hall that was executed in a single day. The design inspired millions of people since it was the biggest and the very first artwork that came up following much creativity from Pollock. However, one would wish to know what inspired Pollock to come up with this appealing artwork. In response, the inspirational design came after Pollock had been influenced by some of the amazing techniques and intelligence employed by his Mexican muralists counterparts-Diego Rivera, David Alfaro, and Orozco, just to mention a few.
In fact, The Independent posits, “he was successful long before his death and even a bona fide celebrity of the art world” (Para. 7). Specifically, his 20-foot-wide composition design was because of his influence by Orozco’s Larger than Life Scale. Orozco’s influence is clearly seen on Pollock’s work at the hood where he uses snakes and skull images just like in Orozco’s work. Despite being challenged by colleagues, Pollock had unique styles of his own, which made him an outstanding critic in the game. Drip painting, which stands out as one of the painting techniques used by Pollock, made expert use of purified water to spot cleanliness in his artwork rather than using cotton soaked in saliva, which was used regularly on other artistic designs.
The style was employed in his almost all his artworks thus making them fascinating pieces of art for journalists, scholars, researchers, and other artists all around the world. Apart from the drip style, Pollock also used obscured and disguised techniques that attracted the eyes of many people. The combination of these techniques resulted in a densely composed and a fatal-to-read piece: The Bald Women. Pollock’s work has been an inspiration and a source of knowledge to humankind in all aspects of life.
As Bates points out, Pollock’s “1949 Life magazine article…shot the artist to fame” (1). In his artwork, he meant to communicate to the society about various issues affecting it ranging from insecurity, poverty, and corruption among others. He focused on showing the society its real image as reflected in the mirror of life and or nature. For example, Eyes in the Heat is a piece of art that alludes to nature where long island on the surface of the earth is perceived as eyes in the heat or simply the face of the sun. Currently, Pollock’s artworks are preserved in different recognized museums and libraries such as Dartmouth’s art museum and Barker library.
This level of recognition is a clear indication of how crucial and valuable his work was and or is even up to date. Commemoration of his legacy is carried out annually in the United States through exhibitions of artwork in various art institutions and museums. Pollock’s life came to a halt after tragic road carnage in 1956. This tragedy followed after he was alleged to battle alcoholism for years, which contributed to his sudden death. Though dead, Pollock speaks volumes and volumes to both the current and the future generations. He is indeed a legendary upon focusing on the legacy of brilliant artwork he left on earth.
Works Cited
Bates, Ellen. “Jackson Pollock.” The Library Journal 137.4(2012): 1-2. Print.
The Independent. Portrait of the Artist: The Life and Art of Jackson Pollock, 2006.