“Number 31” was performed in 1949, a few years after Jackson Pollock took up action painting. At the time, he no longer used brushes to make these paintings. He projects the paint randomly on large surfaces, in a gesture qualified as dripping. Jackson Pollock only created thirteen such canvases on paper in 1949, and only eight of them feature the shiny metallic paint used in “Number 31”.
“With his revolutionary new technique, Pollock effectively upended the existing framework of traditional painting practices. True dripping paints were – and still are – the ultimate in mid-century American avant-garde, and it’s rare to see them appear on the secondary market.said Alex Rotter, in charge of 20th and 21st century art at Christie’s. ‘Number 31’ is a superb example. This is a fantastic and frenetic combination of rich hues, straight out of the paint can. It’s a brilliant display of Pollock’s rigor and effusion“.
The house of François Pinault estimates that “Number 31” could be sold for more than 45 million dollars (41 million euros)when the painting will go under the hammer on May 12 during its next New York evening sale dedicated to 20th century art. It could thus become one of Jackson Pollock’s most expensive paintingsafter remaining more than two decades in the same private collection.