Blue Poles
Jackson Pollock, Gough Whitlam and the Painting That Changed a Nation
Tom McIlroy
- The
- captivating
- story
- behind
- the
- iconic
- Blue
- Poles
- -
- the
- painter,
- the
- process,
- the
- patronage,
- the
- politics
- and
- the
- national
- scandal.In
- 1973,
- Blue
- Poles,
- the
- iconic
- painting
- by
- America's
- great
- abstract
- expressionist
- Jackson
- Pollock,
- was
- acquired
- by
- the
- Australian
- government
- for
- A$1.4
- million.
- This
- record-setting
- price
- for
- an
- artwork
- sparked
- a
- media
- sensation
- and
- controversy
- both
- in
- Australia
- and
- the
- United
- States.Blue
- Poles:
- Jackson
- Pollock,
- Gough
- Whitlam
- and
- the
- painting
- that
- changed
- a
- nation
- details
- how
- Jackson
- Pollock
- rose
- to
- fame,
- the
- negotiations
- that
- led
- to
- the
- artwork's
- move
- to
- the
- National
- Gallery
- of
- Australia,
- and
- the
- many
- successes
- and
- turbulent
- turns
- in
- between.This
- story
- covers
- Pollock's
- entrée
- into
- an
- art
- circle
- which
- included
- renowned
- patron
- Peggy
- Guggenheim,
- as
- well
- as
- his
- relationship
- with
- artist
- Lee
- Krasner,
- and
- the
- larger-than-life
- accounts
- that
- surrounded
- his
- artistic
- practice
- -
- including
- questions
- around
- the
- creation
- of
- Blue
- Poles.It
- was
- Gough
- Whitlam's
- commitment
- to
- the
- arts
- and
- cultural
- capital
- that
- would
- see
- the
- painting
- move
- to
- another
- continent,
- where
- the
- media
- feasted
- on
- stories
- of
- its
- cost
- and
- brows
- were
- raised
- over
- its
- merit.
- The
- value
- of
- Blue
- Poles
- to
- the
- Australian
- art
- and
- museum
- landscape
- was
- yet
- to
- be
- foreseen.Journalist
- Tom
- McIlroy
- tells
- a
- compelling
- account
- of
- one
- of
- Australia's
- most
- prized
- paintings,
- which
- stirred
- up
- many
- storms
- from
- the
- time
- of
- its
- creation
- to
- its
- placement
- in
- the
- NGA.'A
- terrific
- book,
- a
- must-read
- for
- the
- year'
- READINGS'Well-crafted
- and
- thoroughly
- absorbing'
- INSIDE STORY
pro-mbooks3 : libris
