Artist: Jackson Pollock Date: 1947 Link: Reflection of the big dipper
Formal Analysis: The work is random splatters of paint across a canvas. Your eyes are drawn to the center of the painting by the bright blue shape in the center, you then see hints of yellow and orange surrounding the center giving suggestions of an organic form that you can never make out. The contrast of the bright blue, yellow, and orange to the black adds layers of texture to the painting. The black lines are almost straight showing some non organic form to the painting.
Contextual Analysis: During this time abstract and expressionism was starting and Pollock is considered one of the first. He was painting during the depression so he struggled to make money and relied on government programs for funding.
Unknown author. Jackson Pollock Biography, Paintings, and Quotes, January 2011 Reflection of the big dipper analysis Accessed 26 Feb 2017.
Psychological Analysis: Jackson Pollock continued to strive to gain attention his whole life he never got as a child, from his alcoholic father and his mother who was busy raising his bothers and sisters. He struggled his whole with Alcoholism himself and eventually died because of it. This painting was created during his drip period when he struggled to identify his quality work. He also was struggling to keep his marriage together.
Biography.com Editors. Jackson Pollock Biography . The Biography.com website, January 28, 2015 , Paul Jackson Pollock Bio. Accessed 26 Feb 2017.
This work makes no sense at all to me, the big dipper is a constellation of stars that looks like a dipper. This painting does not even have a shape of a dipper. Maybe the title ‘reflection of the big dipper’ is referring to something else like the tool he used to create this painting. Maybe he used the biggest dipper he had in his kitchen to scope paint out and fling it at the canvas. I believe this painting is about nothing, it is free form created by the artist with no purpose. I do not like this work because it has no intellectual value. I do not see anything in it.
On the other hand people may find this work interesting because of its free form look. To them they may see the big dipper as Pollock was trying to express it. Maybe the randomness of the lines lets the viewer search and find there own meaning in the painting. Maybe others think this is how Pollock saw the big dipper and they now have insight into the artist mind. This allowed them to view what he felt while looking at the big dipper. My opinion still stands I still dislike this painting I still believe it shows nothing and is just some random paint thrown at a canvas.
The great part about art is that it does not have to make sense. The imagination of an artist can be full of chaos and confusion. Sometimes event the artist does not full understand what they are doing, but art is not always literal.
SO crazy….. I almost chose this same exact image! I see what you mean when you say that your eyes are drawn to the center of this photo. My favorite color is blue so therefore, that’s all I see when I look at it. I know it is aggravating that art does not always make since because I hate that, yet love that at the same time.
I agree, I don’t see how the artist got “the big dipper” out of this photo. I don’t see any stars or how this would relate to a big dipper at all. I do see this painting as a free form painting so maybe the artist just put something together. Like I commented on Danielle’s page, when I see paintings like I this I feel like the artist maybe was letting some anger or emotions out and this is what he came up with.
Perhaps the idea of a constellation like the big dipper – a well known symbol of guidance during dark times and a reminder of staying the course with direction – isn’t so much a visible image but a metaphoric idea that is meant to suggest that Pollock is looking for a way out of these emotions?
I agree
It’s common to see negative responses to Pollock’s work but I’m not sure that you really tried to understand it in order to put yourself in the shoes of someone that might appreciate it. I agree with many of your observations but in your analysis it would help for you to apply what you’ve researched more as you think about how these facts might alter your understanding or interpretation of the work.
For example, based on your research provided in your contextual analysis paragraph you might put together that the challenging and unconventional nature of the work might have created a buzz and sparked interest in the art community when it was created. Later this could have been referenced in your “devil’s advocate” paragraph to possibly be one reason why someone might like or appreciate the work. The same goes for the psychological analysis – you list a lot of factors that might have influenced the artist but do not discuss how these might be represented in the work itself.
Struggling with addiction, losing your marriage partner, and being under pressure and scrutiny to create something revolutionary would certain have an impact on one’s quality of life. Could the ugly mess of colors and lines – the overall feeling of chaos – perhaps replicate the uncontrollable nature of Pollock’s life at the time. Could this be what someone might also find appealing – perhaps reflecting on similar times in their own life.