The museum I visited for this research study was the Metropolitan Museum. The exhibit I chose to see for this study was “Epic Abstraction: Pollock to Herrera,” an ongoing exhibit that opened on December 17, 2018. The exhibit was located on the second floor of the museum located in the Lila Acheson Wallace Wing, taking the positions of galleries 917-925. The main goal of the exhibition was to present abstract art in a better and new way that would excite viewers and art enthusiasts. Therefore the exhibition contained large paintings that had thin frames all around while other canvases had no frames. The paintings featured in the exhibition were from familiar abstract art staples such as Jackson Pollock, Willen de Kooning, Motherwell, Mark Rothko, and Cy Twombly. From my point of view, I think the Met has managed to present the collection of these artists in a better and exciting way. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The first work of art I saw in one of the exhibition rooms was one created by Jackson Pollock. Jackson painted Pasiphae in 1943. Looking closely at this artwork, I noticed the presence of many figurative elements, but the most prominent element is the figure standing in the right periphery of the canvas. This artwork by Pollock indicates his expressionist ideas which were heavily influenced by Kandinsky, Picasso and Klee. The Pasiphae painting is oil on canvas. In the same exhibition hall was a huge painting of Autumn Rhythm created by the same artist, Jackson Pollock. Pollock created this artwork in October 1950. This painting is a non-representational image composed of thinned paint applied to unstretched, unprepared canvas that was placed on the floor instead of being pinned to the easel. The size of the painting is 207 inches wide and uses an ambient scale to wrap around both sides creating a sense of visual rhythmic dynamic floating. The exhibition also included paintings by Mark Rothko, one of which was the painting Color field. There were two untitled watercolors made between 1944 and 1946, all deeply moving. Another work of art I noticed in the exhibition was Elizabeth Murray's painting Terrifying Terrain, created from 1989 to 1919. This piece was described as an oil on shaped canvas. Other artworks were those of Louis Nevelson's Mrs. N's Palace, created with painted wood and mirror, an op-art that Kenneth Noland did in 1961 entitled October, and Carmen Herrera's Equilibrium artwork that he made in 2012. Jackson Pollock's works were exquisite and composite, and moved me more than the other pieces despite being all unique. Above all the painting of Pasiphae was the most notable. The image boasted solid, composite structures integrating central white animals flanked on either side by two figures standing sentinel in pose. Pollock created these figures in an enigmatic and composite way, which brought out the reminiscence of medieval engravings of tribal peoples. With the intricate brush strokes in the painting and the flourishes, Pollock was portraying a specific interpretation of automatism, which is a surreal technique that an artist employs to relinquish conscious control to the brush when creating a work of art. Most likely, Jackson began by painting the outline of the figures and proceeded by applying thin watercolor colors and continuing with opaque bands which he applied with greater force. All these designs and elements are pressed against the picture plane, which made me aware of the surfaces and textures of the canvas that I saw with1 (2017); 27-60.
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