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Jackson Pollock's
Number 2, 1949 from the
Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute, Museum of Art, Utica, New York
© 2006 Pollock-Krasner Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Jackson
Pollock at Williams College is
a
unique opportunity to see three of Pollock's famous “drip” paintings
in the Berkshires. These works are extremely fragile,
due to the materials with which they were painted,
and rarely travel. The exhibition features Number
2, 1949, which
was treated last month at the Williamstown Art Conservation
Center. Number
2, 1949 is being
displayed on a specially designed free-standing plinth.
The backing of Number
2, 1949 has
been removed so that visitors can literally “see” beneath
the surface of this monumental, sixteen-foot painting.
This is the first time in history one of Pollock’s
paintings has been displayed in this revealing way.
The
exhibition explores how conservation can shed light on
Pollock’s complex “drip-painting” method, choice of unconventional materials, and his stylistic evolution. It also examines Pollock’s use of the “frieze" format
and how this composition affects the style and meaning
of these works.
The Plonsker Family Symposium, Jackson Pollock:
Beneath the Surface is being held in conjunction
with this exhibition. Renowned Pollock specialists
will gather on Saturday, May 13, 2006 at Williams College.
This is a free, public event.
Both
the Symposium and the exhibition have been organized
as a special tribute to Kirk Varnedoe, Williams Class
of 1967. Varnedoe was the Chief Curator of Painting
and Sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art and organized
the groundbreaking Pollock retrospective held there
in 1998.
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