Uploaded August 2021 | Updated September 2026, 3 hours ago

---

In this first lecture, originally delivered at the National Gallery of Art on March 30, 2003, the distinguished art historian Kirk Varnedoe begins with Jackson Pollock at a key moment in the emergence of a new form of abstract art in the mid-1950s. Building on Ernst Gombrich's Mellon Lectures of 1956, Varnedoe begins by asking: Can there be a philosophy of abstract art as compelling as Gombrich's argument for illusionism? What is abstract art good for? And finally, what do we get out of abstract art?

Still haven’t subscribed to our YouTube channels? 
National Gallery of Art ►► bit.ly/33fFsuD
National Gallery of Art | Talks ►► bit.ly/3mfNeiO
   
ABOUT THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART  
The National Gallery of Art serves the nation by welcoming all people to explore and experience art, creativity, and our shared humanity.  
  
More National Gallery of Art Content:
Subscribe: bit.ly/33fFsuD
Facebook: bit.ly/3eqoJv3
Twitter: bit.ly/2SvGOPF
Instagram: bit.ly/3enn5dz

#KirkVarendoe
#JacksonPollack
#ErnstGombrich
#AbstractArt
#AWMellon
#PicturesOfNothing
#Minimalism
#TwentiethCenturyArt
#AbstractionAndRepresentation,
#Modernism
#Postmodernism
#Pop
#Art
#NationalGalleryOfArt
#ArtHistory