Ruth Kligman (January 25, 1930 – March 1, 2010) was an American abstract artist who was romantically involved with two prominent American artists of the mid-20th century,

Jackson Pollock Paul Jackson Pollock (; January 28, 1912August 11, 1956) was an American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. He was widely noticed for his " drip technique" of pouring or splashing liquid household paint onto a hor ...

and

Willem de Kooning Willem de Kooning (; ; April 24, 1904 – March 19, 1997) was a Dutch-American abstract expressionist artist. He was born in Rotterdam and moved to the United States in 1926, becoming an American citizen in 1962. In 1943, he married painter El ...

Early life and education

Kligman was born to a Jewish family in Newark,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, with ancestors who had come from eastern Europe. Her father was Morris Kligman. Deciding at a young age that she wanted to be an artist, Kligman studied at the

Art Students League The Art Students League of New York is an art school at 215 West 57th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may stu ...

after moving into New York, as well as the New School for Social Research and

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

Career

Painting

Kligman was an abstract painter, working in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, New York. Her works include ''Joan of Arc'' and the ''Light and Deman'' series. Kligman developed in several directions at different stages in her career, including iconography, gilding, curved canvases, bright primary shapes, and sunset-inspired gradations.

Writing

In 1974, Kligman published ''Love Affair: A Memoir of Jackson Pollock'', about her relationship with Pollock.

Personal life

Kligman was involved with Pollock in 1956 for a few months before his death. She was 26 and he was 44 when they met at a gallery where she was working. He was struggling with alcoholism. On August 11, 1956, Pollock had been drinking all day before speeding and losing control of the car in which they and Edith Metzger were traveling. Pollock and Metzger died in the crash. Kligman was thrown free and suffered serious injuries. She then became involved for several years, from about 1957–1961, with the artist

. De Kooning named a painting, ''Ruth's Zowie,'' for Kligman's exclamation at seeing it. Artists and photographers featured her in their work, including Irving Penn, Marisol, and Robert Mapplethorpe. She said that she and

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the Art movement, visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore th ...

had a crush on each other for years. Friendly with

Jasper Johns Jasper Johns (born May 15, 1930) is an American painter, sculptor, and printmaker whose work is associated with abstract expressionism, Neo-Dada, and pop art. He is well known for his depictions of the American flag and other US-related top ...

, she continued with her own painting and long shared a studio with

Franz Kline Franz Kline (May 23, 1910 – May 13, 1962) was an American painter. He is associated with the Abstract Expressionist movement of the 1940s and 1950s. Kline, along with other action painters like Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Robert Mot ...

on 14th Street in New York. Another source reports she moved into Kline's studio after his death in 1962. Kligman was married to artist Carlos Sansegundo from the mid-1960s until the late 1970s.

In popular culture

In the biographical film ''

Pollock Pollock or pollack (pronounced ) is the common name used for either of the two species of North Atlantic marine fish in the genus ''Pollachius''. '' Pollachius pollachius'' is referred to as pollock in North America, Ireland and the United Kingd ...

'' (2000),

Ed Harris Edward Allen Harris (born November 28, 1950) is an American actor and filmmaker. His performances in ''Apollo 13'' (1995), '' The Truman Show'' (1998), '' Pollock'' (2000), and '' The Hours'' (2002) earned him critical acclaim and Academy Award ...

starred as Pollock, and

Jennifer Connelly Jennifer Lynn Connelly (born December 12, 1970) is an American actress. She began her career as a child model before making her acting debut in the 1984 crime film ''Once Upon a Time in America''. After having worked as a model for several year ...

portrayed Kligman.

Bibliography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kligman, Ruth 1930 births 2010 deaths 20th-century American painters 21st-century American painters Painters from New York City Artists from Newark, New Jersey Jewish American artists Sole survivors Writers from Newark, New Jersey Writers from New York City American women painters Painters from New Jersey 20th-century American women artists 21st-century American women artists 21st-century American Jews