Jackson Pollock was born on 28 January 1912 in Cody. An American painter and a leading figure of Abstract Expressionism, Pollock became famous for his drip technique, in which he poured and flung paint across large canvases laid on the floor. Works such as Number 1A and Autumn Rhythm emphasized the physical act of painting, and critics dubbed him Jack the Dripper. He was given wide attention by Life magazine in 1949, which asked whether he was the greatest living painter in the United States. He struggled with alcoholism and died in a car accident, and his wife, the painter Lee Krasner, helped to preserve his legacy.
Before and after
- 1912Rise of vorticism
- 1912Henrietta Leavitt finds the period-luminosity law
- 1912The Piltdown Man is announced
- 6 January 1912Alfred Wegener proposes continental drift
- 28 January 1912Birth of Jackson Pollock
- 1 March 1912Founding of World Tennis
- 23 March 1912Birth of Wernher von Braun
- 27 March 1912Birth of James Callaghan
- 15 April 1912Birth of Kim Il-sung
More in Art, literature & culture
- 1792Publication of La Marseillaise
- 7 May 1824Beethoven's Ninth Symphony premieres
- 26 November 1865Publication of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
- 1871The Internationale
- from 1886 to 1905Rise of Post-impressionism
- from 6 April 1896 to 15 April 18961896 Summer Olympics
The era
This moment belongs to the Industrial era (1760 CE to 1914 CE), steam, factories and revolutions. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.
