The Essential Jackson Pollock

The Essential

by Justin Spring

For readers who have little time to spare and are averse to art-world jargon, this series aims to provide an entertaining guide to individual artists and pop culture. Each volume presents an account of the artist's life, personal and professional anecdotes, concise definitions of cultural and social movements that shaped the artist's work, and colour reproductions. Jackson Pollock has been described as the most important American painter of the 20th century, and is credited with having invented Abstract Impressionism. Thrust into international celebrity, he died violently. This book considers the question of what is significant about Pollock's "drip" paintings, what caused his mental breakdowns, and what his western upbringing has to do with his art.

Genres: Art

112 pages, Hardcover

First published September 15, 1998

About the author

Justin Spring is a New York based writer specializing in twentieth-century American art and culture. He is the author of many monographs, catalogs, museum publications, and books, including the biography Fairfield Porter: A Life in Art (Yale University Press, 2000) and Paul Cadmus: The Male Nude (Universe, 2002). He has been the recipient of a number of grants, fellowships, and awards, including a Guggenheim Fellowship and the International Association of Art Critics Best Show Award. He has held research fellowships from Yale University, Brown University, Radcliffe College and Amherst College. His monograph on Paul Cadmus was a finalist for the Lamda Literary Award in Art History.

Reviews

[Sarah Grebinoski · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good insight into Jackson Pollock's art as well as his personality and the demons (alcoholism and mental illness) that contributed to his early death.
The book includes information about the abstract art created in New York during the 1940's and 1950's, how it was received by critics and the public, and how Jackson Pollock became the face of Abstract Expressionism.
A whole lot is packed into a little book.

[Samuel Valentino · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll say it right off the bat, I don't like Jackson Pollock. Although that was reason enough to read about him - can't criticize something you don't know about, right? And I will say that I do have more respect for him as an artist after reading about his life and art career. I may not be into abstract expressionism, but he needs to be credited nonetheless for his contribution to art development.

[David McDevitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just a dumb little artist bio book but it had a lively, provocative, kinda gossipy voice that kept me entertained and taught me some stuff about Pollock, who I wasn't too interested in to begin with.

[Jaxie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. Easy read, gives a lot of information about the artist without boring the reader and beating the point into a pulp. Just the essential info and a wide variety of paintings. Love this series for introducing new artists.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great examples of his art.

Teacher beware of page 21, 35, 39

[Hogfather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good and easy to digest guide to Jackson Pollock. Very fair to the women in his life, thank goodness.

[Hannah Duffy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Book Jackson Pollock by Justin Spring expands on the life of Jackson Pollock and the influence he had on creating a movement around a form of art known as abstract expressionalism. The biography shows a glimpse of his dark and complex life. The book explores Pollock’s life and the struggles he went through as a young child through adulthood. Pollock used art to express his emotion, and his abstract paintings reflected his feelings. Although today Pollock is recognized as a famous artist his path of getting there was far from easy; all of his life’s challenges helped him create abstract expressionalism.
Jackson was a struggling artist for many years, but over the course of his life several individuals helped shape him into the artist we remember today. Many people tried to help Jackson overcome the issues that he was experiencing, but no one could get him to quit drinking. Early in his career Pollock was approached by Thomas Bentos who became his mentor and friend (25). Bentos helped Pollock refine his talent and encouraged him to explore his talent further. Later, his wife, Lee Krasner, was a key supporter and promoter of his work. Krasner was very found of Pollock’s work and said, “‘what he had done was much more important than just a line. He had found the way to merge Abstraction with Surrealism,’” (42). She helped make a name for him. This caused Pollock to become an art celebrity around the world. However, throughout his life one thing he could never overcome was his alcoholism, which made it more difficult to pursue his career and strengthen his relationships. Even with his newfound success he was still depressed, an alcoholic and virtually broke.
The book Jackson Pollock was captivating because it showcased the life of a very interesting and influential man. It showed how he coped with his alcoholism, and how art was his escape. Jackson has greatly impacted the art world both during his life as well as many years later.

[Aaron Stephens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another bare bones survey of an Artist.