Pollock's first break

Jackson Pollock was lucky enough to have Peggy Guggenheim visit his studio early on in his career. After a few studio visits Guggenheim invited him to have his first solo exhibition in November 1943.

The exhibition was held at Art of This Century and featured fifteen oil paintings and an unrecorded number of works on paper, all completed between 1941 and 1943. The exhibition included important works such as Guardians of the Secret, The Mad Moon-Woman, Male and Female, The Moon Woman, and The She-Wolf, plus gouaches and drawings. Prices ranged from $25 to $750. The show is the first solo exhibition by an American artist at Art of This Century gallery.

Guggenheim also gave Pollock his first commission, a mural for the entrance hall of her East 61st Street town house. Pollock had to tear down a wall in his apartment to accommodate the twenty-foot-large canvas. When it was installed in Guggenheim’s home, it was a hit.