“Autumn Rhythm: Number 30” is a piece of artwork created by
Jackson Pollock, an influential American painter and a significant figure in
the abstract expressionist movement. Abstract expressionism is a form of art
that developed after World War II in New York City in the 1940s. It chronicled
the fervor and constraints of modern life. In the late 1930s, Pollock began visiting a Jungian analyst
to treat his alcoholism. His analyst encouraged him to create drawings to
outpour his feelings. These would shape Pollock's understanding of his pictures
not only as expressions of his own mind, but expressions that might stand for
the fear of all modern humanity living in the shadow of the devastating war. Pollock
emphasized the journey to create art as being just as important as the piece
itself. Pollock distinguished himself from other artists of the time with his radical abstract
styles in the history of modern art. He detached line from color, redefined the
categories of drawing and painting, and found a new means to describe pictorial
space. By the 1940s, Jackson Pollock introduced his famous drip
paintings, the first of their kind. He forever altered the course of art with
his revolutionary techniques.
Although
some may look at Autumn Rhythm and merely see a bunch of splatters of paint
that a five year old could produce, looking deeper into the artwork showcases
otherwise. Pollock first created a complex foundation using
black paint and he then intricately added webs of white, brown, and turquoise
lines, which produce the contrasting visual rhythms and sensations: light and
dark, thick and thin, heavy and buoyant, straight and curved, horizontal and
vertical. Although Pollock's imagery is nonrepresentational as was meant to be,
"Autumn Rhythm" is evocative of nature, not only in its title but
also in its coloring, horizontal orientation, and sense of ground and space.
The piece originally had no name going only by “Number 30” but it was later
named “Autumn Rhythm” due to it being reflective of the piece. Because there is
no representation in the painting it is deemed timeless allowing for viewers to
connect with it readily and not feel alienated. In a time where America was
recovering from a terrible war, it was a comfort to the average American as it
was a simple representation of a collective thought shared by the Americans. It
served as an expression of an identity that could be expressed and shared by
all.
Many have looked at this work of
art and dismissed it as art that is not “real art”. I, however, find many aspects
of this painting rather intriguing and worthy of being appreciated. First and
foremost, the preciseness of the various strokes, splatters, and drips make the
painting beautiful. At first glance, the piece as a whole seems random and
merely unorganized marks on a canvas but Pollock carefully placed each stroke
with respect to space and color variants. The intricacy of the painting makes
it so that no one can exactly replicate what Pollock has done. In my opinion,
originality is a major component when determining a work’s beauty.
Additionally, the variety of the painting is another attractive factor that
elevates the beauty of the work. Every time you look at the painting you notice
a specific line, blend of colors, or evidence of control that you may not have
noticed the previous time. From various angles, the painting looks completely
different. By using a mere four colors Pollock was able to put an enormous
amount of depth into a two dimensional painting. He brought the canvas to life
in a beautiful, persistently effortless way.
