Guggenheim Presents Focused Exhibition on Seminal Work by Jackson Pollock

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Guggenheim Presents Focused Exhibition on Seminal Work by Jackson Pollock

As part of the public reopening of the Solomon R. #Guggenheim Museum on October 3, the museum presents Away from the Easel: Jackson Pollock’s Mural, a focused exhibition dedicated to the first monumental painting by American artist #jacksonpollock (1912–1956). Commissioned by visionary collector and dealer Peggy #Guggenheim for her Manhattan home in the summer of 1943, during a pivotal moment in the evolution of Pollock’s artistic style, Mural was completed by the end of that same year. The current presentation is the first time this work has been on view in #newyork in more than 20 years and marks the painting’s debut at the #Guggenheim Museum. Along with Mural, the exhibition features three additional works by Pollock.

Nearly 20 feet wide by 8 feet tall, Mural is Pollock’s largest painting. The work was a breakthrough for the artist and marked a transformational year. During his brief time working as a custodian and preparator at New York’s Museum of Non-Objective Painting (the first inception of the #Guggenheim Museum) in 1943, Peggy #Guggenheim gave him a contract with a monthly stipend that permitted him to paint full-time. Her early support of Pollock’s work arguably established his career. Following the commissioning of this painting, the artist had his first solo exhibition, held at Guggenheim’s museum-gallery, Art of This Century, later that year. Though he was not yet working consistently on the floor and from all sides, it was during this time that Pollock began to challenge traditional notions of painting, combining the technique of easel painting with that of mural production, all while further experimenting with abstraction. Pollock stretched the enormous canvas, even tearing down a wall in his downtown apartment to make room to work on it upright. As he stated in a 1950 interview with William Wright, “[T]he direction that painting seems to be taking here is away from the easel—into some sort of wall painting. . . . ”

Mural would later be donated by #Guggenheim to the University of Iowa, Iowa City, along with several other works, following Guggenheim’s relocation to Venice in 1947. It now resides in the collection of Iowa’s Stanley Museum of Art. The painting was the subject of an extensive research and treatment project begun in 2012 by the Getty Conservation Institute and the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles. It was during this analysis that the legend that Mural had been painted for the most part in a single night was confirmed to be untrue, among other findings. While certain elements of the composition were laid down in an initial burst of activity, the final work was completed over an extended period of time.

In conjunction with this exhibition, the #Guggenheim Museum concurrently presents Knotted, Torn, Scattered: Sculpture after Abstract Expressionism, which considers the legacy of Pollock’s groundbreaking Mural through works by #Guggenheim collection artists from the 1960s and early 1970s.

Exhibition Support

Generous funding for Away from the Easel: Jackson Pollock’s Mural is provided in part by Barbara Slifka; Acquavella Galleries Inc.; Mary and John Pappajohn, Des Moines, Iowa; Audrey and David Mirvish, Toronto; and Mnuchin Gallery.

Additional funding is provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art, Helen Frankenthaler Foundation, and The Pollock-Krasner Foundation.

About the Solomon R. #Guggenheim Foundation

The Solomon R. #Guggenheim Foundation was established in 1937 and is dedicated to promoting the understanding and appreciation of modern and #contemporaryart through exhibitions, education programs, research initiatives, and publications. The international constellation of museums includes the Solomon R. #Guggenheim Museum, #newyork; the Peggy #Guggenheim Collection, Venice; the #Guggenheim Museum Bilbao; and the future #Guggenheim Abu Dhabi. An architectural icon and “temple of spirit” where radical art and architecture meet, the Solomon R. #Guggenheim Museum is among a group of eight Frank Lloyd Wright structures in the United States recently designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site. To learn more about the museum and the Guggenheim’s activities around the world, visit #Guggenheim.org.

Visitor Information

Admission: Adults $25, students/seniors (65+) $18, members and children under 12 free. Open Thursdays through Mondays from 11 am to 6 pm. Pay What You Wish hours are Fridays and Saturdays from 4 to 6 pm. Timed tickets are required and available at Guggenheim.org/tickets. Explore the #Guggenheim with our free Digital Guide, a part of the Bloomberg Connects app. Find it in the Apple App Store or in the Google Play Store.

The #Guggenheim is implementing health and safety measures in consideration of visitors and employees and in compliance with #newyork State and City guidelines. Face masks will be mandatory inside the museum for anyone over the age of two. New requirements should be reviewed in advance of a visit; they are posted on COVID-19 Safety Measures: What to Expect When Visiting.

#PollockMural

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For Additional Information

Lauren Van Natten
Solomon R. #Guggenheim Museum
212 423 3840
pressoffice@Guggenheim.org

Away from the Easel: Jackson Pollock’s Mural
Solomon R. #Guggenheim Museum, 1071 Fifth Avenue, New York
October 3, 2020–September 19, 2021