The American avant-garde were notable for the unconventional ways in which they approached the canvas. They transformed their surfaces into an “Arena in which to act, rather than as a space in which to reproduce, re-design, analyse or express an object actual or imagined.” (The American Action Painter p.22) This approach to painting will become apparent through an analysis of Jackson Pollock’s artistic practice with a focus on his work “Blue Poles.” Pollock approach to painting can be likened to a performative ritual, he lived in his canvases treating them as a stage in which he circulated around like a dancer (Mural and Alchemy by Jackson Pollock p.96). There’s clear evidence of how Pollock occupied this space in “Blue Poles.” Firstly, he
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Line cannot be read as describing shape or enclosing form, instead, it reflects autonomous events and has become the index for the movements of an artist’s body (The Vast Beauty of Jackson Pollock). These artworks aren’t narrative based, they are a map of the artist’s actions, thoughts, and feelings during the time of its creation. Therefore, the work “Blue Poles” with its bold loose calligraphic lines, could be referred to as a canvas that summarises, “Gesture over time in a single frame” (Breaking the Sound Barrier: Transparency and…. p.530). This means that each line has become the embodiment of the act in which was performed to produce such a mark, which would explain why Pollock himself refers to his works as “Memories arrested in space” (Jackson Pollock Post Ritual Performance p.62). This is one of the fundamental aims of the Action Painters, they didn’t paint to represent or reproduce an object but rather made the ephemeral actions of painting the subject matter, being interested in the act of painting rather than what paint could do (Breaking the Sound Barrier; Transparency and…P.529). Since the subject of painting is the artist’s actions it’s become arguable that the artist and their painting have become inseparable (.). Once Hoffman approached Pollock and said “he doesn’t work …show more content…
These works are not seen as static, instead, they’re perceived in ways which mimic how we experience life. They’re viewed in four-dimensional space whilst in a constant state of flux almost as if the work itself presents a living situation (Willem De Kooning “Women On The Themes Of Painting). This can be experienced in De Kooning's painting “Excavation”, here the viewer is denied a hot spot, a place in which the eye always goes and he instead produces a slippery surface which is in a constant state of suggestiveness, it’s a space that is experienced in infinite ways (The Tragic Image: Action Painting Refigured AE 15). This largely results from his use of open contours and rhythmic lines that never block any forms in but rather creates a flow where one line bleeds into the next. It is this which allows these artists to break down the barriers of art and life, the marks on these canvases don’t limit our ways of seeing, rather they provide a space in which a viewer can experience in an infinite amount of ways like any other living situation. As Rosenberg puts it, “each stroke had to be a decision and was answered by a question” (AE2), which would imply each line doesn’t propose a singular way of seeing and instead asks the
Line cannot be read as describing shape or enclosing form, instead, it reflects autonomous events and has become the index for the movements of an artist’s body (The Vast Beauty of Jackson Pollock). These artworks aren’t narrative based, they are a map of the artist’s actions, thoughts, and feelings during the time of its creation. Therefore, the work “Blue Poles” with its bold loose calligraphic lines, could be referred to as a canvas that summarises, “Gesture over time in a single frame” (Breaking the Sound Barrier: Transparency and…. p.530). This means that each line has become the embodiment of the act in which was performed to produce such a mark, which would explain why Pollock himself refers to his works as “Memories arrested in space” (Jackson Pollock Post Ritual Performance p.62). This is one of the fundamental aims of the Action Painters, they didn’t paint to represent or reproduce an object but rather made the ephemeral actions of painting the subject matter, being interested in the act of painting rather than what paint could do (Breaking the Sound Barrier; Transparency and…P.529). Since the subject of painting is the artist’s actions it’s become arguable that the artist and their painting have become inseparable (.). Once Hoffman approached Pollock and said “he doesn’t work …show more content…
These works are not seen as static, instead, they’re perceived in ways which mimic how we experience life. They’re viewed in four-dimensional space whilst in a constant state of flux almost as if the work itself presents a living situation (Willem De Kooning “Women On The Themes Of Painting). This can be experienced in De Kooning's painting “Excavation”, here the viewer is denied a hot spot, a place in which the eye always goes and he instead produces a slippery surface which is in a constant state of suggestiveness, it’s a space that is experienced in infinite ways (The Tragic Image: Action Painting Refigured AE 15). This largely results from his use of open contours and rhythmic lines that never block any forms in but rather creates a flow where one line bleeds into the next. It is this which allows these artists to break down the barriers of art and life, the marks on these canvases don’t limit our ways of seeing, rather they provide a space in which a viewer can experience in an infinite amount of ways like any other living situation. As Rosenberg puts it, “each stroke had to be a decision and was answered by a question” (AE2), which would imply each line doesn’t propose a singular way of seeing and instead asks the