On the floor I am more at ease, I feel nearer, more a part of the painting, since this way I can walk around in it, work from the four sides and be literally `in' the painting.

-- Jackson Pollock, 1947.

Jackson Pollock (1912-56) was an American painter who was the commanding figure of the Abstract Expressionist movement.

By the mid 1940s Jackson Pollock was painting in a completely abstract manner. Instead of using the traditional easel he fastened his canvas to the floor or the wall and poured and dripped his paint from a can; instead of using brushes he manipulated it with sticks, trowels or knives.  This was called Action Painting and was supposed to result in a direct expression or revelation of the unconscious moods of the artist.

Some people love Pollock’s work.  Some people hate it.  Visit this website and “paint” like Pollock.