AP Art History
PowerPoint Project
by Jake Schrass
m_pollock_number 5_schrass
Alpha/#key below:
m=13
100 WELL KNOWN
WORKS OF ART
#13 Pollock, Number 5
Interpreted Using
The
Feldman Model of Formal Analysis
Feldman’s Model of Art Criticism
From the work of Edmund Burke Feldman,
During the late 1960’s and early 70’s
1. DescriptionList the visual qualities of the work that are obvious and immediate.
“What do you see in the artwork”?
Include content and subject matter in representational worksInclude abstract elements in nonrepresentational pieces.
2. AnalysisFocus on the formal aspects of elements of art, principles of design.
“How does the artist create a center of interest?
How does the use of color impact the painting?”
3. InterpretationPropose ideas for possible meaning based on evidence.
“What was the artist trying to communicate”?
4. JudgmentDiscuss the overall strengths/success/merit of the work.
How and why has this work achieved cultural value?
Jackson Pollock Number 5, 1948,
Abstract Expressionism, 96” by 48”, “painting”
New York, NY
1.DESCRIPTION
a. painting on fiber – paint dripping
b. paint
c. Size: 96” by 48”
d. line, color, texture, space – the work is created by
dripping lines across a canvas.
e. horizontal, asymmetrical
f. jagged, thick, thin, variable, irregular, intermittent,
planar
g. the lines in the work are spread out in a way that
creates very small organic shapes throughout the work
h. Large, flat
i. warm, cool, random, dark
j. simulated texture of lines stacked on top of each other,
and real texture of lines of paint
k. This work was originally created in 1948 in New York
when artists had extraneous emotion from the end of
WWII.
2.ANALYSIS
a. The end of WWII, and the
victory in the war by the U.S.
b. The painting emphasizes line, color and negative organic
shapes
c. repetitious, varied, chaotic, horizontal oriented, random
d. movement, lack of balance, color, line, natural shapes
e. illogical, symbolic,
f. shallow, naturalistic, random,
g. dynamic composition because the lines create a chaotic
movement across the piece without leaving the area of the
piece.
h. paint dripping as influenced by the artists use of paint and
his imagination
i. The artist used this chaotic movement and noncomplementary colors to create a feeling of comfort and
confusion at the same time. He made the piece so that it looks
different every time the viewer looks at it illustrating the
changing emotions of this time period.
3. Interpretation
a. The artists statement was to show “the
artists’ emotion in his very own
unconventional painting technique and feel
what it brought to them” as said in the article
on Totally History.
b. This work is created to give everyone an
opinion about it and to show the viewer a
different emotion every time.
c. The piece forced everyone to have an
opinion on it; even Congress had an opinion
on this odd piece.
4. Judgment
a. What sets this work apart and makes
it worth studying? Totally History
b. How does this work fit into the context of
what came before and after it? Khan
Academy
c. How have critics, historians, and the public
reacted to this work? New York Times
Article.
d. How has this work changed the way art is
viewed? Pollock Critique
e. Link to AP Exam Q&A
Compare and Contrast
Pollock's Painting Technique
Pollock Slide Show
Khan Academy
Pollock Biography
Abstract Expressionism
Smarthistory
Metmuseum Summary
1940’s-50’s
Abstract Expressionism was a movement that began
in the years following WWII. The works created in
this time were characterized by non-objective
imagery and strong emotions. Abstract
Expressionists believed their works were made out of
a primal instinct of pure emotion instead of the
premeditated works of other movements.
Interesting Facts About Artist
• He was born in 1912 in the American West
• He was the youngest child in his family
• Socially dysfunctional, he dropped out of high
school to peruse art
• He was nicknamed “Jack the Dripper”
because of his style of dripping paint on a
canvas.
• He killed himself in a car accident while he
was intoxicated.
Pollock painted Orange Head (right) out of the emotions
he felt after leaving a alcoholism asylum.
References
1. (Pollock- Quizlet Notes-definition)
http://quizlet.com/2081535/art-1-jackson-pollocknotes-flash-cards/