Drip Painting Exercise, featuring Jackson Pollock
AIP1, Session 2
Pollock was known for his unique style of drip painting, and was considered one of the major artists of his time. He often used hardened brushes, sticks, and syringes as point applicators. He usually strung his canvas on the floor or wall, so he could be inside the painting.
"When I am in my painting, I am not aware of what I'm doing."
- Jackson Pollock
I started exploring the drip painting technique using chinese ink, as its low viscosity makes it ideal to splash and strew around. I experimented with different sized and textured brushes, eventually moving from paintbrushes to makeup brushes (powder brush) to toothbrushes.
Generally, holding the brush up higher will result in smaller blots, but long tendrils. Bigger brushes create bigger blots, especially if the brush is soft, like the powder brush.
At this point, I am experimenting more about drips and splashes than strewing paint around.
I also started experimenting with direction and speed. The faster the drip is, the longer and thinner the blots will be.
Below is a prep study, acrylic on paper. I experimented with the values of paint, going from the lightest grey to black. The exercise stressed on layering, how to work with monochromatic colours without making it seem flat:
In both the final piece and the last prep work, I tried to use more movements and make bigger blots. Halfway through I just started flinging paint right from the bowl. In the final piece, I tried to strew paint instead of just splash it, creating a path instead of puddles. This is Pollock's main characteristic.
I think the power of abstraction lies in its chaos, it is simple yet so rudimentarily complex. "The painting has a life of its own," Jackson Pollock once said. People are always saying that abstraction is so easy that anyone can do it. But that's the point! Energy is universal, and abstraction is a visual manifestation of pure energy. Billions of splashes, creating a visual representation.
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:
What happens when you try to paint blind? Does it make an impact to your painting, or to yourself?
What other applicators can I try? Mops? Brooms? Baseball bats? Balls? Car tires?
Why does paint look different when freshly applied and when dry?
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