Saturday, July 7, 2012

World Artist Network Celebrates Jackson Pollock's 100th Birthday with Community Painting


One of the contributors on the World Artist Network's Community Pollock-style Painting, created Saturday by visitors to the Bridgeport Arts Fest.
Photograph by Brandon T. Bisceglia.

Passersby splattered and dripped reds, yellows, blues and blacks onto a canvas laid out on State Street beside McLevy Green in Bridgeport Saturday afternoon. With each new flick of the wrist, the Jackson Pollock-style painting took on greater dimension.

The collaborators on this masterpiece, however, were not professional artists. They were visitors to the World Artist Network's booth at the Bridgeport Arts Fest.

The community painting project was the brainchild of WAN Director Valeria Garrido, who said she wanted a unique way to celebrate the centennial of the famous painter's birth in 1912.

Pollock was a pioneer of abstract expressionism in the middle of the twentieth century, and is best known for the seemingly paint-splashed pieces created during his “drip period.”

“People forget that Pollock was revolutionary in the 40's and 50's, including by making New York City, rather than Paris, the center of the art world,” said Garrido.

After adding their marks, those who contributed to the community painting were encouraged to add their names to a list of participants. Garrido said the list would be used to give credit to all the artists involved in the painting's creation.

WAN plans to show the painting, along with the contributors' credits, during the Bridgeport Art Trail in November. It may also be put out at other upcoming events.

WAN participated in the Bridgeport Arts Fest for the second year in a row, providing arts activities for children and adults as part of its “Artist for a Day” series of events. Also displayed were pieces of art for sale from around the world created by artists who are members of the nonprofit.

WAN's canopies along State Street.
Photograph by Brandon T. Bisceglia.

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