MOMA

Whilst I was in New York I managed to visit loads of museums, one being the Museum of Modern Art.
From the outside it is a modest building, unlike the Met which I will review later. The interior is modern, and very white. A large room was dedicated to design, which is where I saw the Polish posters that I’ve blogged on.
What I enjoy most is seeing paintings that I know and know quite a bit about. Fortunately the MOMA is filled to the brim with artwork from new artists and the old, more well known artists. I took some photos and here are a select few.

I don't think I have ever seen a Jackson Pollock in the flesh before, and this was certainly impressive. It is called One:Number 31. I remember watching a programme at college about Pollock, and his painting technique. He laid the canvas' on the floor and used brushes, or sticks to flick and dribble the paint over the canvas. Sometimes he would even pour the paint on straight from the tin. The paint is so dense, and the colours contrast to make it look even more layered. This style was what Pollock became most known for.

I got quite excited about seeing this painting by Picasso, mostly because I wrote an essay on Cubism and analysed it for quite a while. It is called La Demoiselles d'Avignon and it was the very first Cubist painting, revolutionising art there on after. It depicts five prostitutes in a brothel. Picasso was influenced by Primitivism and African tribal masks, which Picasso said was to warn off evil spirits. It was unlike anything that had ever been painted before, women were usually rounded with soft edges, not sharp and pointy. Many people didn't like it because went completely against traditional painting, but some did, including Georges Braque, whose work was heavily influenced by Cubism. I was surprised it wasn't bigger than it was, I imagined it to be a huge painting but it was quite modest. Overall it was a highlight of the MOMA.

There was a lot of Andy Warhol, including the soup cans and this Marilyn Monroe print. Golden Marilyn Monroe was painted right after Monroe died, and it has a religious feel about it, due to the golden background and the lone print or Marilyn's head.

This painting by Edward Ruscha made me smile. Oof is a word found in comic books, so its somewhat odd seeing it in big yellow letters on a big canvas. The colours make it striking and its difficult not to notice it. Ruscha said they hold "a certain comedic value" which I definitely agree with, and it makes this strange painting even more appealing.