unlikelymoose
did he master croquet
Paintings and giclee prints for sale at stores.ebay.com/unlikely-moose (click on the "pollock" link at the left)
+++ Artist +++
Erik Maldre
+++ Artist Statement +++
Jackson Pollock biography/Erik Maldre autobiography
There is a huge myth surrounding Jackson Pollock due to the sweeping elemental forces merging with rugged gallantry surrounding his work and public image. Yet, we actually know very little about his life outside of the ferociously poetic painting, excess boozing and shattered womanizing. He's such a captivating figure that I aspire for unknown information about him. I want to know what other things he has done in his life. I want to know how he felt about broad issues and also about common, everyday items. I want to know if he collected nickels. I want to know if he ever stole some khakis. I want to know if he ever visited London.
As I formulate these questions, they most often relate back to my personal experiences. So, in essence, I am fusing my study of Jackson Pollock with an expression of my life. Some questions are inquisitive such as "did he like donuts". Some are relatable such as "did he lose his keys". And some become boastful. For example "did he fix cameras" incites that I did something that he couldn't do. It's these questions that I must infuse into visual form.
How to communicate these thoughts? Well, the best starting point is to examine what made Pollock famous in the first place. That's his Abstract Expressionist "drip" paintings. I have decided to use that as the foundation of this series. Certainly this is a mute exercise on many levels. It's almost impossible to enter the same level of subconscious freedom that Pollock experience simply because of the 50 years of history that follow his work. To simply replicate his work is only a plagiarized exercise in unoriginality.
Alas, I'm not attempting to paint Abstract Expressionist paintings. This is an autobiography of myself and a biography of Pollock. The Abstract Expressionist technique is simply a means for the viewer to connect my questions on Pollock's life with Pollock himself. His drip style is unmistakable. So it's to my advantage that it is terribly cliche to replicate Pollock's paintings. I need that recognizability factor for people to associate my questions with Pollock.
Large 2' by 4' paintings were made in the same manner Pollock was famous for by placing the work surface and the ground and applying the paint in a ritualisitic manner around the developing shrine. The next step was to dissect these large paintings into 5x7 and 8x10 pieces. When studying a large topic, one must attack it piece by piece; so this series follows a similar approach. Each sliced painting becomes a facet in the study of Pollock allowing me to investigate many areas of his life. Each painting becomes a journal entry. That's why the questions are painted directly on top of the painting. The focal point becomes the study of the life of Jackson Pollock and a study in the life of myself.
Yet, when it's all said and done, all these paintings are just questions. I propose no direct answers in the paintings (or do I? I purposely put no question marks in the paintings). The only answers attained are the ones that the viewer brings to the work. That sounds a lot like what Pollock's paintings do on a postmodernist level.
did he master croquet
Paintings and giclee prints for sale at stores.ebay.com/unlikely-moose (click on the "pollock" link at the left)
+++ Artist +++
Erik Maldre
+++ Artist Statement +++
Jackson Pollock biography/Erik Maldre autobiography
There is a huge myth surrounding Jackson Pollock due to the sweeping elemental forces merging with rugged gallantry surrounding his work and public image. Yet, we actually know very little about his life outside of the ferociously poetic painting, excess boozing and shattered womanizing. He's such a captivating figure that I aspire for unknown information about him. I want to know what other things he has done in his life. I want to know how he felt about broad issues and also about common, everyday items. I want to know if he collected nickels. I want to know if he ever stole some khakis. I want to know if he ever visited London.
As I formulate these questions, they most often relate back to my personal experiences. So, in essence, I am fusing my study of Jackson Pollock with an expression of my life. Some questions are inquisitive such as "did he like donuts". Some are relatable such as "did he lose his keys". And some become boastful. For example "did he fix cameras" incites that I did something that he couldn't do. It's these questions that I must infuse into visual form.
How to communicate these thoughts? Well, the best starting point is to examine what made Pollock famous in the first place. That's his Abstract Expressionist "drip" paintings. I have decided to use that as the foundation of this series. Certainly this is a mute exercise on many levels. It's almost impossible to enter the same level of subconscious freedom that Pollock experience simply because of the 50 years of history that follow his work. To simply replicate his work is only a plagiarized exercise in unoriginality.
Alas, I'm not attempting to paint Abstract Expressionist paintings. This is an autobiography of myself and a biography of Pollock. The Abstract Expressionist technique is simply a means for the viewer to connect my questions on Pollock's life with Pollock himself. His drip style is unmistakable. So it's to my advantage that it is terribly cliche to replicate Pollock's paintings. I need that recognizability factor for people to associate my questions with Pollock.
Large 2' by 4' paintings were made in the same manner Pollock was famous for by placing the work surface and the ground and applying the paint in a ritualisitic manner around the developing shrine. The next step was to dissect these large paintings into 5x7 and 8x10 pieces. When studying a large topic, one must attack it piece by piece; so this series follows a similar approach. Each sliced painting becomes a facet in the study of Pollock allowing me to investigate many areas of his life. Each painting becomes a journal entry. That's why the questions are painted directly on top of the painting. The focal point becomes the study of the life of Jackson Pollock and a study in the life of myself.
Yet, when it's all said and done, all these paintings are just questions. I propose no direct answers in the paintings (or do I? I purposely put no question marks in the paintings). The only answers attained are the ones that the viewer brings to the work. That sounds a lot like what Pollock's paintings do on a postmodernist level.