Abstract expressionism

Abstract expressionism, U.S. art movement of the 1940s and 1950s that explored the emotional, expressive power of nonfigurative painting. It was the first significant school of U.S. painting, influencing artists in other countries. Jackson Pollock, who dipped and spattered paint on the canvas, was called, along with some other members of the movement, an “action painter.” Franz Kline, Willem de Kooning, Mark Rothko, Barnett Newman, and Arshile Gorky are considered leading abstract expressionists.

See also: Pollock, Jackson.