Between any two artists of a similar genre, there will undoubtedly be points of departure and of direct comparison. Pollock’s most famous works are his scattered paint abstracts full of movement, shape, color, and often exceptionally large canvasses. Barnett Newman’s works were all abstract, dominated by organic shapes with complex and equally abstract titles such as “The Slaying of Osiris”, and all are marked by vertical or horizontal anchors. Both artists were true mavericks in the art world, departing not from abstractions, but from other abstract artists in their clarity, style, and approachability. Both artists were affected by the Great Depression and the second world war – Newman’s art career began in the late 1930’s It is the purpose of this paper to examine the works of both artists from the standpoint of how each artist’s work reflects their beliefs and the concerns and movements of their period.
