USA; 32 UNKNOWN PAINTINGS BY JACKSON POLLACK DISCOVERED ON WAREHOUSE ARE TO BE DISPLAYED IN NEW EXHIBITION
Record ID:
646548
USA; 32 UNKNOWN PAINTINGS BY JACKSON POLLACK DISCOVERED ON WAREHOUSE ARE TO BE DISPLAYED IN NEW EXHIBITION
- Title: USA; 32 UNKNOWN PAINTINGS BY JACKSON POLLACK DISCOVERED ON WAREHOUSE ARE TO BE DISPLAYED IN NEW EXHIBITION
- Date: 28th October 1998
- Summary: (BN06) NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (MAY 13, 2005) (REUTERS) 1. SLV EXTERIOR MARK BORGHI GALLERY 0.03 2. SLV ALEX MATTER AND HIS SON, JORDAN, LOOKING AT THEIR POLLOCK PAINTINGS 0.09 3. VARIOUS CLOSE UP PAINTING (UNNAMED) 0.21 4. SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) JORDAN MATTER, SON OF ALEX MATTER SAYING: "And at one point I picked up a package and I said 'In or out" and on the package the word Pollock with some dates and so he (Alex) said 'Hold on, Oh my God' and we opened up the package and we found paintings, many paintings of his work." 0.38 5. ZOOM IN PAINTING, (UNNAMED) 0.48 6. SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) ALEX MATTER, INDEPENDENT FILM MAKER AND OWNER OF THE POLLOCK PAINTINGS DISPLAYED, SAYING: "It's impossible to say what the value is. Everybody would like to know what the value is in any way they can find out, but they're really no way to know until you start putting them on the market place which is far from anything we're interested in doing right now. Our main interest is to have this international exhibit where they're shown around the world." 1.17 (BN06) NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (OCTOBER 28, 1998) (REUTERS) 7. PAN PICTURES OF POLLOCK AS SHOWN AT 1998 MUSEUM OF MODERN ART EXHIBIT 1.24 8. VARIOUS CLOSE UPS OF PHOTOGRAPH OF POLLOCK PAINTING "ONE: NUMBER 31, 1950" BY HANS NAMUTH 1.40 (BN06) NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (MAY 13, 2005 ) (REUTERS) 9. SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English), MATTER SAYING: "He was far from what is usually described: this angry, drunk artist who is always throwing things, beating up people, and so forth. I never saw the beating up, or throwing, I never saw any of that. I did see him drunk on a few occasions." 2.04 10. CLOSE UP PAINTING (UNNAMED) 2.10 11. SLV (SOUNDBITE) (English) JORDAN MATTER SAYING: "There was a dumpster outside, at my request, a huge dumpster, and I swear to you, if he (Alex) had gone for coffee, I would have throw these away without even looking at them. I was like crazy, I was like 'Let's just get out of here' and throw things away and he was like "No! Everything, we look at everything". And as a result, I'll give you (looking at Alex) credit, we are here now." 2.36 10. WIDE SHOT OF THE THREE PAINTINGS DISPLAYED AT BORGHI GALLERY 2.40 11. PAN OF INSIDE GALLERY WITH OWNER MARK BORGHI TALKING TO ALEX MATTER 2.48 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 12th November 1998 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
- City:
- Country: USA
- Reuters ID: LVAE3OKNWQAIPWTIP1FSEFOTTVPR
- Story Text: 32 unknown works by artist Jackson Pollock have been
discovered in New York, and will be featured in an upcoming
exhibit.
It's a million to one shot: 32 unknown Jackson
Pollock works discovered in a storage facility.
Alex Matter---the son of photographer and graphic
designer Herbert Matter and abstract painter Mercedes
Matter---was trying to clear his overflowing storage space
in East Hampton when his son Jordan came upon yet another
package: "And at one point, I picked up a package and I
said 'In or out" and on the package the word Pollock with
some dates and so he (Alex) said 'Hold on, Oh my God' and
we opened up the package and we found paintings, many
paintings of his (Pollock) work."
Among the works discovered were 22 paintings in
Pollock's signature style of drip painting, 2 enamels on
paper some small pastels and many unfinished experimental
pieces. All date from 1946 to 1949 and range in size from
5-by-7 inches to 16-by-17 1/2 inches. Three of the
paintings are now on display at New York City's Mark Borghi
Gallery.
Alex Matter says only three of the paintings are
initialed and nobody knows exactly how much they're worth.
"It's impossible to say what the value is. Everybody would
like to know what the value is in any way they can find
out, but they're really no way to know until you start
putting them on the market place which is far from anything
we're interested in doing right now. Our main interest is
to have this international exhibit where they're shown
around the world."
Alex's father was a close friend of Jackson Pollock.
He gave him the keys to his Tudor City studio in Manhattan.
There, Pollock experimented with paints invented by
Herbert's cousin, the Swiss chemist Robi Rebetez.
Alex recalls Pollock with fond memories and says he was
a kind and considerate man. "He was far from what is
usually described: this angry, drunk artist who is always
throwing things, beating up people, and so forth. I never
saw the beating up, or throwing, I never saw any of that. I
did see him drunk on a few occasions."
Alex and his son found Pollocks' work in their storage
space back in 2003 and to this day, they can't believe how
close they were to throwing it all away: "There was a
dumpster outside, at my request, a huge dumpster, and I
swear to you, if he (Alex) had gone for coffee, I would
have thrown these away without even looking at them. I was
like crazy, I was like 'Let's just get out of here' and
throw things away and he was like "No! Everything, we look
at everything". And as a result, I'll give you (looking at
Alex) credit, we are here now."
Professor Ellen Landau of Case Western Reserve
University, who has written a book on Pollock,
authenticated the works. She was so impressed by the
importance of the find, she agreed to organize an
exhibition with gallery owner Mark Borghi and Mr. Matter.
The exhibition, to be named "Pollock Matters" will open
next year and coincides with the 50th anniversary of the
artist's death.
- Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None