In 1942, most of the leading figures of European modern art came to New York because of the war. André Breton, the surrealist "pope," lived on 11th Street, Roberto Mata lived on 9th Street, Fernand Léger often appeared in restaurants in Chinatown with large groups of friends, Mondrian, a jazz lover, often appeared at balls, Max Ernst and Peggy Guggenheim lived in a charming new house on East 51st Street, and Duchamp was already in New York, where he had been in Paris and New York since 1915. Although Picasso, Miró, and Matisse remained in Europe, all the other Surrealist artists came to New York during the war. Their presence had a profound impact on the local art scene.
Pollock and Robert Motherwell were influenced by the Surrealist movement. Robert Motherwell was a 27-year-old oil painter from Washington, D.C., and one of the later exponents of Abstract Expressionism. Their first meeting was in the fall of 1942, when, after a friend's introduction to Pollock, Motherwell visited Pollock at 46 East 8th Street. He was deeply impressed by Pollock and actively introduced him to the surrealist artists he knew.
As a result, Pollock quickly became acquainted with the surrealist artists. Although De Chirico, Miró, and Dalí had already exhibited in New York, it wasn't until the surrealist artists moved to New York that Pollock became fully aware of their achievements. Their arrival coincided with the crisis of American oil painting, when the political art of the 30s was abandoned, and no new style had yet been established.
Pollock, like other artists, began to use Surrealism as a source of new ideas. This does not indicate any interest in Salvador Dalí's works that look like they are about to melt. For Pollock, the magic of Surrealism was its freedom from academic tradition. He admired Miró very much because of his dreamy features and beautiful calligraphy. Another surrealist artist Pollock admired was Andrea Mata, a pioneer of "childhood" painting, who lived in Connecticut during the war.
Unlike Cubism, which was only a style of painting, Surrealism was an organization of activities, with leaders and followers, its own manifesto and magazine, its own exhibitions and the power to prescribe members. After the move to the United States, the organization had largely ceased to exist, with no new declarations or demands for reform.
The Surrealists living in New York did not get along well with Pollock. Pollock, who did not speak French and had no intention of studying it, was outraged by the Surrealists' apparent contempt for American art, for which he refused to participate in an important exhibition. "Jackson didn't like the Surrealists because those people were half American," said one insider, "and the Surrealists didn't like him because they were always being flattered, and Jackson didn't please them at all." ”
Despite his bad relationship with the Surrealists, Pollock became interested in Surrealism and the automatism of its creative spirit, so he joined an organization of the Mata Office to promote Surrealism. In this organization, Pollock learned from Mata the surrealist way of thinking and observation. While participating in organized events, he plays games with his new surrealist friends. Pollock once wrote a title called "Men and Women", and gave each person a piece of paper and drew a male monster with any shapeshift. In the end, Motherwell said, "We feel like he's messing around." The crowd dispersed, but Pollock seemed to get something out of the game. He quickly created an oil painting called "Men and Women", a title that is obviously related to the game.
Painter Wang Yancheng shares with you the beauty of modern art......