Traces the life and career of the American artist, explains how he developed his painting techniques, and assesses his contribution to modern art. Jackson Pollock (1912-1956) revolutionised the art of this century with his famous "pouring paintings" of the late 1940s and early '50s. No artist of our time has been more controversial, and Pollock's reputation as the archetypal Abstract Expressionist has assumed mythic overtones. The balanced evaluation presented in this well-reasoned overview is long overdue.