Understanding the Abstract

I was reading through the artists of the Abstract Impressionism movement and of course like I am sure all of you did, I had my preferences. I also asked others of their preferences of the 1940s and 50s artists and there was a general consensus. Although all of the artists of this time worked with a similiar goal in mind; to create something of gestures with emotion in mind, (influenced by surrealism) and no consideration of anything objective or representational, there was in the minds of many a favorite. Ad Reinhardt had an awareness of the elements and his efforts to "involve himself" in his paintings through the careful planning of the paintings execution, especially the size, was unique. And the political influence behind Mark Rothko's brightly colored work was new and different, many of the qualities were apparent in either of the artists work. Most did not see the preparation the two artists put into these paintings, and instead ironically turned to someone else. Jackson Pollock, a painter famous for his new technique "action painting," was a favorite among many. He, himself, has said that his paintings were nothing but paintings. They meant nothing more than that, whereas others that used careful preparations in their works, were overlooked.