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Friday, June 27, 2014

In the Good Old Watermelon Time

Pollock family eating watermelon in Arizona, ca. 1914 / unidentified photographer. Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner papers, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Now that summer is fully upon us, it seemed a good time to share this photograph which has long been a staff favorite here at the Archives of American Art. Not only is it seasonally appropriate (I could go for a 2-foot long slice of watermelon right about now) and a charming family portrait, but it shows the softer side of one of America's most influential artists, Jackson Pollock. Perhaps you didn't recognize him right away since he was only a toddler when this photo was taken, but he is the smallest of the tow-headed youngsters in this picture, standing in the center and struggling to hold up that watermelon that is almost as big as he is. Who knows, perhaps the patterns created by the dribbling of watermelon juice in the dirt sowed some inspiration in him that would later influence his Abstract Expressionist style...

Bettina Smith, Digital Projects Librarian
Archives of American Art

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