Jackson Pollock

Lee Krasner studied cubism at Cooper Union and worked as a full-time artist as part of the New Deal's Federal Art Project. In 1945, she married Jackson Pollock, and her keen critical eye helped to strengthen both of their work.

An icon of Abstract Expressionism, Jackson Pollock is best known for his drip paintings, as well as his battle with alcoholism.

Pollock left Manhattan for the more rural environment of East Hampton, where he started his poured painting technique: 'Jack the Dripper'. Jack was a tortured, monosyllabic, alcohol-dependent soul, swinging between sensitivity and machismo. He died in a car accident when separated from his wfe, who made his career for him. Eyes in the Heat was bought by his supporter and dealer Peggy Guggenheim. Look for the rhythms and flow in the threads of paint, they may be instinctive but they are not arbitary or careless: the Eyes are watching you. See the original in the exquisite Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, Venice which was Peggy Guggenheim's home and is now her Collection. to discover more visit: http://www.guggenheim-venice.it/ to fly to Venice : http://www.alitalia.com/

Art in Motion with Action Artist Matt Cheney Few artists can say they created a painting while free falling from an airplane. For 25-year-old action artist Matt Cheney, it s all in a day s work. Though it may seem unconventional, action sports are as much a form of artistic expression as they are competitive sports. And Cheney has further explored the idea of action sports as art by integrating activities like snowboarding, skateboarding and skydiving with oil painting. Here s how Cheney s action art is inspired by abstract painters like Jackson Pollock and Saburo Murakami who defined action painting during the abstract expressionist movement of the Post WWII era. Intrigued by the performative nature of action painting, Cheney uses various action sports (which he loves) to create the movement behind his work. Working with a crew of several people, Cheney uses video cameras and still photography to document the visual experience of his paintings. The whole process for how it s done, from the oil paints to mixing the pigments and thinking about the composition, is free spirited and spontaneous. I love the idea of preserving a moment in time. For his senior project at the Art Institute of Boston, Cheney built a halfpipe in a studio and created paintings like Pink on Black while skating up and down the halfpipe. -Dana Ranill