📖 BOOK REVIEW⠀📚
BOOK: Pollock Confidential
AUTHOR: Onofrio Catacchio
Stars: ⭐⭐
Published: April 7th 2020
@AftershockComics @evgeny_bornyakov
Following the historical CIA project Long Leash, this graphic novel chronicles the life and times of Jackson Pollock. His art changed the world’s view on painting, and this comic puts that into perspective. Long Leash was a project to fund American artists in order to keep Americans buying their art locally instead of buying communist.
So, let me level with you. This is not a page-turner. The writing is as dry as the CIA dossier it is meant to mimic. The art, while full of vivid color, looks like someone crudely recreated photographs with tracing paper. That being said, in the context of a textbook or scholastic setting, this comic is an excellent tool to teach about Pollock. It gives you an idea about his processes and the inspirations behind his pieces. As a textbook, it’s perfect. Outside of that, however, I don’t see many people buying it.
You can see more in my video review:
Small Summary:
Forceful, tempestuous and visionary – in an incredibly short and turbulent life Jackson Pollock changed painting forever. This vivid graphic novel delves into his pioneering physical approach to making art, highlights the key characters surrounding the New York mid-century art scene, and reveals the intriguing relationship between Pollock’s painting and the covert activities of the Cold War.
*****
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Received from Netgalley.