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The purchase elicited a great deal of public discussion; according to art historian
Patrick McCaughey, "never had such a picture moved and disturbed the Australian public". The debate centred on the painting's record selling price, at the time a world record for a contemporary American painting, as
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According to Heller's daughter, "He was very involved with this art movement from its early years, and there was a struggle among these
American artists to gain recognition. Even in America, the European painters were getting all the attention and prestige. So, he worked very hard with the dealers
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hung in the living room of Heller's 10th floor New York apartment on
Central Park West. During this time he frequently had guests view the art and loaned it to various museums for additional viewing. The painting was so large that it required the removal of apartment windows to lower it onto the
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The painting has become one of the most popular exhibits in the gallery, for both its value as a major work of 1950s abstract expressionism, and its significance in
Australian politics and history. Estimates of the painting's present value vary widely, from $ 100 million to $ 350 million, but its
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and the painters and the museums to try to establish
Abstract Expressionism as an important movement. It was very, very important to him that these major works land in major museums." This desire to have the work shared was one of the contributing factors to the sale of
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According to art historian Dennis
Phillips, the specific rather than ambiguous title "limits our field of comprehension and does the painting a singular disservice. Because we look for the poles and miss much of the rest, the name is simply too distracting."
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Renowned art collector and supporter Ben Heller acquired the painting in 1957 a year after
Jackson Pollock died for a reported $ 32,000. Heller was friends with Pollock and patronized him and many other American artists during his lifetime.
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which ran from 1 November 1998 to 2 February 1999. The painting was the signature work of the exhibition, and as described in a review, it "dominated" the last gallery of the show, ending it "not with a whimper, but a bang".
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street below, a feat accomplished with the support of the "Seven
Santini Brothers" moving team. The Heller family had a special relationship with the artwork and it was difficult to see it go.
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At the time of the painting's creation, Pollock preferred not to assign names to his works, but rather numbers; hence, the original title of the painting was simply
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from
Jackson Pollock when they purchased it for $ 8000, the highest price paid for a Pollock at that time. It hung in their New York apartment.
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increased value has at least shown it to have been a worthwhile purchase from a financial point of view.
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491:"Growing up with Blue poles » The History » ACTION REACTION Jackson Pollock & Blue Poles"
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left
Australia for the first time since its purchase for inclusion in a Pollock retrospective at the
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420:"Ben Heller, Pioneering Collector of Abstract Expressionism: 'There's Nobody Else in That League'"
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244:. In the conservative climate of the time, the purchase created a political and media scandal.
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European and American Paintings and Sculptures 1870–1970 in the Australian National Gallery
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The Prime Minister's Christmas Card: Blue Poles and Cultural Politics in the Whitlam Era
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Phillips, Dennis (December 1974). "Understanding Jackson Pollock and Blue Poles".
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212.1 cm × 488.9 cm (83.5 in × 192.5 in)
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277:'s Abstract Expressionism exhibition from 24 September 2016 to 2 January 2017 in
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a work that has rarely been off display since its purchase in 1973.
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459:"Why Ben Heller Was a Powerful Figure for Abstract Art | Ideelart"
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2016–2017: Royal Academy of Arts Abstract Expressionism exhibition
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in 1973 and today remains one of the gallery's major paintings.
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623:"Gough! Splutter! Museum's blue poles cause a whole new row"
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While rarely loaned, the work was displayed as part of the
568:"Jackson Pollock's landmark work remains in pole position"
758:"OUT OF THE BLUE - How the Conservation Project Unfolded"
732:"Blue Poles returns to the National Gallery of Australia"
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well as the perceived financial ineptitude of Whitlam's
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at the official National Gallery of Australia website
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Spring, Justin (1999). "Jackson Pollock, Superstar".
391:"Jackson Pollock. One: Number 31, 1950. 1950 | MoMA"
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Painting (Silver over Black, White, Yellow and Red)
232:who decided that the price should be made public.
240:government and debate over the relative value of
153:; it reportedly originated from Pollock himself.
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495:ACTION REACTION Jackson Pollock & Blue Poles
1041:Collection of the National Gallery of Australia
201:to the National Gallery of Australia in 1973.
66:Enamel and aluminum paint with glass on canvas
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248:1998–1999: Museum of Modern Art retrospective
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205:1973: National Gallery of Australia purchase
181:1957–1973: New York art collector Ben Heller
125:. It was purchased amid controversy by the
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145:for the year 1952. In 1954, the new title
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149:was first seen at an exhibition at the
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932:Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center
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445:"IdeelArt | the online gallerist"
221:. The gallery's director at the time,
975:Who the #$ &% Is Jackson Pollock?
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479:
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366:Lloyd, Michael and Michael Desmond.
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418:Durón, Maximilíano (3 March 2021).
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621:Morgan, Joyce (12 December 2003).
524:Heanue, Siobhan (29 August 2012).
360:
14:
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959:Jackson Pollock: An American Saga
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768:from the original on 2 July 2020.
730:Cerabona, Ron (31 January 2017).
526:"Stroke of genius: the legacy of
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380:by M. Lloyd and M. Desmond, 1992.
566:Cosic, Miriam (18 August 2012).
173:were the original purchasers of
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762:National Gallery of Australia
374:National Gallery of Australia
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211:National Gallery of Australia
127:National Gallery of Australia
95:National Gallery of Australia
1021:Paintings by Jackson Pollock
660:University of Illinois Press
121:painting by American artist
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291:gallery's temporary closure
16:Painting by Jackson Pollock
10:
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953:Pollock-Krasner Foundation
869:Mural on Indian Red Ground
756:Tedmanson, Sophie (2020).
599:, Routledge, 2016, p. 55,
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885:Autumn Rhythm (Number 30)
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654:Barrett, Lindsay (2006).
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285:2020 conservation project
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395:The Museum of Modern Art
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171:Fred and Florence Olsen
1036:Painting controversies
1031:Abstract expressionism
948:Abstract expressionism
719:Royal Academy of Arts.
119:abstract expressionist
77:Abstract expressionism
700:Publications: 44–55.
166:1955–1957: Fred Olsen
877:One: Number 31, 1950
534:ABC News (Australia)
333:Australian Quarterly
258:Museum of Modern Art
151:Sidney Janis Gallery
289:As a result of the
978:(2006 documentary)
736:The Canberra Times
698:Middlebury College
689:New England Review
635:on 2 November 2012
596:National Galleries
540:on 1 November 2012
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376:. Excerpted from
295:COVID-19 pandemic
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219:US$ 1.3 million
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123:Jackson Pollock
114:Number 11, 1952
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42:Jackson Pollock
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633:the original
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463:IdeelArt.com
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340:(4): 91–96.
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217:in 1973 for
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993:Lee Krasner
970:(2000 film)
893:Convergence
853:No. 5, 1948
424:ARTnews.com
299:Blue Poles,
293:due to the
238:Labor Party
1015:Categories
901:Blue Poles
845:Number 17A
784:Blue Poles
639:24 January
605:1317432428
579:1 November
544:1 November
528:Blue Poles
369:Blue Poles
314:References
254:Blue Poles
215:Blue Poles
199:Blue Poles
190:Blue Poles
175:Blue Poles
147:Blue Poles
108:Blue Poles
83:Dimensions
24:Blue Poles
1001:(brother)
829:Paintings
500:7 January
468:7 January
429:2 October
400:2 October
252:In 1998,
139:Number 11
914:The Deep
766:Archived
741:21 March
706:40243661
354:20634664
262:New York
99:Canberra
91:Location
72:Movement
967:Pollock
941:Related
925:Museums
628:The Age
161:History
53: (
995:(wife)
986:Family
917:(1953)
909:(1952)
896:(1952)
888:(1950)
880:(1950)
872:(1950)
864:(1948)
856:(1948)
848:(1948)
840:(1943)
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305:Legacy
279:London
143:No. 11
117:is an
63:Medium
38:Artist
837:Mural
702:JSTOR
696:(1).
350:JSTOR
133:Title
743:2017
664:ISBN
641:2019
601:ISBN
581:2012
546:2012
502:2021
470:2021
431:2023
402:2023
209:The
55:1952
51:1952
48:Year
342:doi
260:in
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
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