Pollock and Rothko

Paper Summary:

This paper examines how the work of Mark Rothko and Jackson Pollock can be considered representative of modern American art. It shows that while the paintings of these two artists could never be mistaken for one another, in a sense their content is a reflection of their trouble lives. Pollock was an alcoholic and Rothko was mentally ill.

From the Paper:

"What both men had in common, however, was a personal investment in their work- whether it would be considered "surrealistic" or "abstract" or, as one critic dubbed Pollock's work "global". Pollock, once, when he was asked how people should look at his work said: "I think they should not look for- but look passively- and try to receive what the painting has to offer and not bring a subject matter or a preconceived idea of what they are to be looking for." The problem with the average museum-goer, staring at a typical Pollock work was stunned by the intricacy and the symbolism of the lines, crossing, intersecting, encircling in bold, brash colors. "He was certainly more than a hit or miss painter, who sloshed his paint about without awareness of the consequences...He was a radical painter..." "

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