Thursday, June 01, 2006

Props to Jackson Pollock


I had my first taste of Jackson Pollock humble pie when I was taking an art history class with TJ Clarke. The TA brought us to the Berkeley Museum and showed us a Pollock. "Try to tell which color, which line, was layed down first," she asked.

The question challenged my doubts about Pollock and made me consider the skill behind his work. I needed to recognize his skill to give pause to the appreciation of the beauty of the paintings he made.

Now, when I pause to consider which line or color went onto the convas first in a Pollock painting, I end up falling into a story, or a tunnel really, of pattern, shape, color, dimension, perspective, and finally transformation. I see snowflakes and sparks of imagination. I see balance and non-judgement found beautifully.

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