Making Modern: Pollock / Picasso

Part of “Making Modern,” this gallery contrasts two titans of Modern art. Side-by-side pairings of paintings, works on paper, and films of the artist at work explore Pollock’s engagement with Picasso, and how the younger artist moved away from representation towards abstraction during the 1940s and ’50s. Pollock was familiar with Picasso’s work, and would have seen it in museums and galleries in New York as well as in publications. Although Picasso pushed the boundaries of representation, Pollock represents the generation that fully embraced abstraction. The installation explores the mid-century shift—both geographic (Paris to New York) and generational—that marks the beginning of Abstract Expressionism in the US.