Jackson Pollock was an American painter widely regarded as the leading figure of Abstract Expressionism, best known for the “drip” or “poured” paintings he made between roughly 1947 and 1951. Born Paul Jackson Pollock on January 28, 1912, in Cody, Wyoming, he died on August 11, 1956, in East Hampton, New York, at age 44, in a car crash linked to alcohol use (Britannica; Wikipedia). Decades after his death, Jackson Pollock remains one of the most studied and imitated artists of the 20th century, and his paintings continue to set records in the art market.
Early Life and Training
Pollock’s family left Cody less than a year after his birth, and he grew up moving between California and Arizona, where his father worked a series of unprofitable farms (Britannica). He was the youngest of five sons born to Stella May McClure and LeRoy Pollock; three of the brothers eventually became artists, including Charles Pollock, who studied painting in New York and later encouraged Jackson to join him there (Wikipedia, Charles Pollock).
Pollock’s formal art education began at Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles, and he later moved to New York to study at the Art Students League, where he trained under the regionalist painter Thomas Hart Benton (National Gallery of Art; EBSCO). Benton’s influence shaped Pollock’s early compositional instincts, even as Pollock later moved away from realistic, figurative painting altogether.
Career Breakthrough and the Drip Technique
Pollock’s career gained real momentum in the early 1940s with the support of collector and gallerist Peggy Guggenheim, who gave him a monthly stipend, exhibited his work at her Art of This Century gallery, and commissioned a mural for her townhouse (EBSCO). That backing let Pollock focus on painting full time and helped establish his reputation within New York’s emerging Abstract Expressionist circle, alongside artists such as Willem de Kooning and Barnett Newman.
His signature breakthrough came with the “poured” or drip technique: rather than working at an easel, Pollock placed raw canvas on the floor and moved around it, dripping and flinging paint using hardened brushes, sticks, and even basting syringes. This method, developed mainly between 1947 and 1951, earned him the nickname “Jack the Dripper” and became closely associated with what critics called “action painting” (Mental Floss). Major works from this period include Number 17A, No. 5, 1948, Autumn Rhythm, and Convergence.
Pollock’s No. 5, 1948 has become one of the most discussed paintings in modern art market history. It reportedly changed hands in a private sale in 2006 for $140 million, a figure reported by The New York Times and widely cited as a record price for a painting at the time, though the identity of the buyer was disputed and never fully confirmed (Wikipedia, No. 5, 1948). An earlier work, Blue Poles (1952), sold in 1973 for $2 million, then the highest price paid for a contemporary American painting (Mental Floss).
Marriage to Lee Krasner
In October 1945, Pollock married fellow painter Lee Krasner, who would go on to shape both his career and his posthumous legacy (Wikipedia). The couple moved to a house on Long Island now known as the Pollock-Krasner House and Studio, purchased with a down payment loaned by Peggy Guggenheim. Pollock converted a nearby barn into his studio, and it was there that he refined the pouring technique for which he is best remembered (Pollock-Krasner House biography).
Krasner managed much of Pollock’s career and, after his death, carefully placed his paintings with major museums. She later established the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, which continues to award grants to working artists. Krasner died on June 19, 1984 (Biography.com).
Struggles with Alcoholism
Pollock struggled with alcoholism for most of his adult life and was in therapy for the condition up until his death (Ohio State University, AAEP 1600). By the mid-1950s, his marriage to Krasner had become strained, and he had begun a relationship with Ruth Kligman, an aspiring painter roughly two decades his junior. Krasner left for Europe after learning of the affair.
Death and Aftermath
On the night of August 11, 1956, Pollock was driving his Oldsmobile 88 convertible on Springs Fireplace Road in East Hampton with Kligman and her friend Edith Metzger as passengers. According to multiple accounts, he was intoxicated and driving at high speed when he lost control on a bend in the road; the car flipped, killing Pollock and Metzger instantly. Kligman was thrown from the vehicle and survived (27 East; Whitehot Magazine). Pollock was 44 years old.
Four months after his death, the Museum of Modern Art in New York held a memorial retrospective of his work, followed by a larger exhibition in 1967. Large-scale retrospectives were also mounted at MoMA and London’s Tate Gallery in 1998 and 1999 (Wikipedia).
Legacy
Jackson Pollock is credited with helping shift the center of the international art world from Paris to New York in the postwar years, and he remains one of the first American painters recognized during his own lifetime as a peer of major 20th-century European artists (Britannica). His work continues to be exhibited regularly at institutions such as MoMA and the Tate, and his drip paintings remain among the most instantly recognizable images in modern art.
FAQs
How did Jackson Pollock die?
Pollock died in a single-car crash on August 11, 1956, in East Hampton, New York, after losing control of his convertible while driving under the influence of alcohol. A passenger, Edith Metzger, also died in the crash.
Who was Jackson Pollock married to?
He married painter Lee Krasner in October 1945. She played a major role in managing his career and preserving his legacy after his death.
What is Jackson Pollock best known for?
He is best known for his drip, or “poured,” paintings created mainly between 1947 and 1951, using a technique of dripping and flinging paint onto canvas laid on the floor.
How much is a Jackson Pollock painting worth?
Prices vary widely by work, but his No. 5, 1948 reportedly sold privately in 2006 for $140 million, among the highest prices ever reported for a painting at that time.
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