Somewhere in the house, his grandfather hid something very valuable that he never told about to anybody. His grandfather was getting old and there were times he used to tell him about his precious possession but being a child he didn't give it much of an attention. One day, he was cleaning the house when he stumbled upon that "thing" which changed his life forever. This story is very interesting as it shows how ignorant this guy was all his life and when he got to know about its true value he was stunned. His grandfather had such a thing in his possession, of which he had told him about but he realized that he wasn't considerate back then. And now, it was right in front of him ready to change his life. But this story is all about how he found that thing and how things changed for him. So what was it? You'll find out soon...
His grandfather was no more and he was also old now. So he decided to move out of the house. This old man from Scottsdale, Arizona was ready to move out of the house. He was prepared and started the first thing that every person who starts moving out of the house does, packing his stuff. While he was doing it, he noticed something that he hasn't seen in the house. It was covered in dust and he couldn't make what it was actually. But then he found out what it was in a most interesting way.
But why was he moving out of the house? He was moving to a retirement home because of his old age. He wanted to sell all his unwanted belongings before he left for the next journey of his life. And it was during this process he found out something about his grandfather. His grandfather was a proud owner of one of the most famous things in the world of which no boy was aware of. You'll be surprised to see what was in this guy's grandfather's possession.
While he was packing his stuff and seeing what all he could sell, he remembered that he has some Lakers memorabilia. He was a Lakers fan and he has collected them for several years. Rather than taking them with him he decided to sell them. But he wasn't aware that there is something else in the garage that was much more valuable than these Lakers Memorabilia. The auction person had his doubts at first but he somehow knew in his heart that this piece is really genuine.
Lakers are one of the world's biggest basketball team and this guy thought that his collection might worth something. All over the world, people collect things like cards, old coins and many other things like these. Even this guy who collected Lakers stuff and was looking forward to selling them. He thought they might be of some worth as they were old and in bulk. But to his surprise, the guy who came to check his collection told him that there something else that could be worth a million. He was very confused at the start but then he was told the truth about that one thing which was sitting idle in his garage.
He called up a local auction guy and told him about his plan of selling his collection. The auction guy agreed to take a look at this old guy's collection. The next day Josh Levine was at this old guy's house who seemed to be waiting for him eagerly. Josh introduced himself and the old guy told him about the collection which was in the garage. Josh was looking at the collection but there was something else in the garage that caught his attention and he kept looking at it.
Josh Levine owns an auction house in Arizona and agreed to check out the Lakers memorabilia that was in this old guy's possession. After giving it a hard look even though he was mesmerized by that one thing in the garage he determined that the collection was worth $300. The old man who was still happy after hearing it was confused by the looks Josh was giving. The old man couldn't understand why he kept looking at the other way. When Josh told him the reason the old man couldn't believe his ears. What did Josh tell him?
Josh who was mesmerized by that thing which was lying in the garage covered in dust didn't realize that space was filled with several other things. The place was like a time capsule. There were so many artifacts that belonged to the old guy's grandfather who had this thing of collecting pieces of history. Between all those stuff there was one thing that was the most precious. But Josh didn't tell the truth at first as he wanted to be sure about his doubts. So he left and started the research work.
Josh went back with the image in his head that wasn't leaving his sight. Even while he was driving back to his auction house, all he could think about was that one thing from the garage. He straight away headed towards his office and went to his computer where he searched for that thing. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to remember the name of that thing he was just staring the search box on his computer. He was getting frustrated and he wanted to know everything about it.
Books are the best when it comes to finding anything you are looking for. Josh who had no idea what to look for as he wasn't able to remember the name he went to the nearest library because he knew to where to look. After turning to several books and pages he found that name he was looking for. Excited he left the building and the first thing he did was to contact the old man...
After finding out what he was looking for he called up the old guy and told him everything and what he wants to do next. The old man who wasn't convinced ignored his request and Josh was just standing there with the phone in his hands looking completely confused by the old man's decision even when he told him about the true value of that thing. Josh had to convince the old man and that too really fast because the old man was about to move in the retirement house and there could be a possibility that he might sell that amazing thing without giving it a thought about how expensive it was.
Josh who knew the value of that thing couldn't believe that he wasn't able to convince the old man even after he told him the approximate value of the thing. The phone call didn't work, so Josh decided to meet the old man in person. He went to his house the next day which was locked. Unfortunately, the old man wasn't at home that day. Josh thought of waiting for him until he was home but then he dropped the idea and went to meet his friend who was an experienced scholar who might be able to give him more depth details about that thing.
Josh was on his way to meet his scholar friend. He told his friend about everything and surprisingly his friend was in shock too. According to his knowledge, this thing which he saw in the garage of this old man was lost in the past and finding it in a place like this was very unexpected. Still, Josh and his friend were hopeful if that thing turns out to be that same thing. But before that, they needed to see it with their own eyes. Will this old guy allow them to see it?
Josh and his friend wanted to take a good look at that thing and for that, they need to meet the old man first. They both went to the old man's house and luckily this time he was at home. The old man saw two men standing in front of his house. Old man recognized Josh and greeted him and his friend. This time it was Josh's friend who did the talking. He told everything about that thing which was lying in this old man's garage. After hearing everything, the old man said yes...
Josh and his friend went to the old man's garage and searched for that thing. Covered in the dust they made sure they don't spoil it further. Surprisingly, it wasn't in a bad condition as they thought it might be except that dust. Josh who knew how to handle stuff like these cleaned it with the cloth. Josh and his friend couldn't take their eyes off from it. The old man was standing behind them, watching them work. But the question was how did it end up here? This thing belonged to the old man's grandfather. They need to find out the connection and things just got more interesting.
Josh and his friend were actually holding that amazing thing from the past. They wanted to know more about it and how did it end up here? The old man who was looking very confused as he wasn't aware of that thing didn't know how to respond to this question. He told them about his grandfather but it wasn't his grandfather who gave it to him but it was his sister. It was all just a big puzzle and Josh wanted to solve it as soon as possible.
Josh asked the old man if he could take it to his lab for more depth research on the item before they could tell if it was even real. The old man looked at Josh's face and said yes to his request. Josh packed the item so that he doesn't spoil it while taking it to the lab. The item was in the lab and Josh brought in some experts and asked them to look for one sign that can tell them if it was real. They found something very interesting about the painting.
The experts were trying really hard to find even a single sign that could prove that this item was indeed original. On the surface, this item was looking fine but when they looked closely with the instruments it was slightly damaged but then you can't blame the old guy as he had no idea about the item and how valuable it was. Fortunately, the damage to the item wasn't that severe and was still in good condition. While the item was under observation Josh decided to find out an answer to the question about the connection between the old man's sister and the item.
The old man told Josh that it was his sister who gave this item to him. But how did his sister get this original item? For Josh, things were getting pretty interesting and he was enjoying everything. he kept telling the old man how lucky he was. Soon, this item would change both of their lives forever. So what was the item and what was connection Josh found out? The story will blow your mind.
The item we are talking about here was an original work from the famous artist Jason Pollock. Josh who owns an auction house knew about Jason Pollock. He was an American artist and an influential figure in the abstract expressionist movement. In 2016, one of his paintings named Number 17A was sold for a whopping $200 million dollar. You'll be surprised to know the real cost of this painting which was found in the garage.
It was abstract art and there could be a possibility that someone tried to imitate Jason's work and it wasn't the authenticated one. Josh was waiting eagerly for the results where experts were trying their best to find out if it was an original or a fake.
As we already told you that one of Jason's work was sold for $200 million dollars, and if this painting his original work then there was no doubt that Josh Levine has found a diamond in a coal mine. While he waited for the results he began to search for a connection between Jason Pollok and the old man's sister. But how?
Josh Levine was looking for a connection between Jason Pollock and this old man's sister who gave him the painting. This old man's sister name was Jenifer Gordon Cosgriff and there is a very interesting story of how she ended up with the painting in the first place.
Unfortunately, the old man's sister Jenifer Gordon Cosgriff was no more and there was no way to ask her in person about the painting and how did she manage to get it from Jason Pollock. Could she have been friends with the artist or knew somebody who was? She was one lucky woman who somehow managed to get a painting painted by none other than Jason Pollock.
Josh Levine who was searching for every clue he could find also started investing money in lawyers to help in finding a connection between Jenifer Gordon Cosgriff and Jason Pollock. Josh Levine consulted several renowned artists and was surprised to hear that he could fetch $15 million if the painting turned out to be an original piece of work by the hands of Jason Pollock. Amazing right?
Josh Levine not only invested the money in lawyers but in private investigators too who could search for every possible answer there were. Even though he was spending so much of his money he knew in his heart this was a good investment. He knew that all his money would come back to him if this gamble pays off.
The investigator called Josh and told him that there was a connection between Jenifer Gordon Cosgriff and Jason Pollock. Both of them attended the same parties and had a common social circle of people. The luck was showering best out of him and things were just getting better for him. It was just a start for him...
Now Josh had every proof that was connecting the old man's sister and Jason Pollock together, he still needed something to prove their relation because people won't believe you based on your words. So he needed something else, luckily the investigator was able to find a photograph in which you could see Jenifer and Jason Pollock together in his own art exhibition.
You can spot Jenifer Gordon Cosgriff (right) in this photograph that proved that she was friends with artist Jason Pollock. Things were looking pretty amazing for Josh Levine, But how much would he earn for this painting? You'll be surprised to see the price at which this painting was sold.
Art experts told Josh that this painting was worth $15 million. This amount could change anybody's lives. Josh and the old man were about to get rich in a few days. However, there was still one major problem that Josh had to solve before he could take this huge amount home and change his life forever.
As we told you the painting was found in the garage and was lying there for years now, and because of that the painting was not in a good condition and needed restoration. The restoration was costing him $50,000 and without giving the money a second thought he was ready to make the restoration. It was in his own benefit because no one would buy a damaged painting.
The painting was under restoration and would soon be listed for auction. Josh Levine believes that he would be able to fetch $15 million as the starting price will be $5 million. Who cares about the price this story was amazing filled with so many things. Like Josh had to hire an investigator to find clues about the painting.
Not every day do you come across stories like this where an old man was living with a $15 million painting which he had no idea for a major part of his life. The old man didn't even know that his sister was friends with the famous artist like Jason Pollock. Josh Levine is one lucky man that got an opportunity where he was able to find this painting.
Paul Jackson Pollock was born on January 28, 1912, in Cody, Wyoming, the youngest of five sons. He was an American painter, who also played a very significant role in the abstract expressionist movement. But what made this American painter different from the other artists? It was his original and unique technique that made him compete with the other famous European Artists. So, what was that technique he used?
Jackson Pollock was famous for his amazing technique of pouring or splashing liquid paints onto a horizontal surface (drip technique), that gave him a better view through which was able to paint from all angles. This technique was also termed as 'action painting' since in this style he used his whole to paint, often in an exciting dancing style. But there was a debate between other painters regarding his Pollock's unique style of painting.
Pollock's used a very unique style to paint his heart out, however, some artists felt differently about his work. Some praised his work and his style but there were others who saw his style of painting as a random act with random effects. But we shouldn't care about the views because everyone in America knew what a great artist he was. In 2016, one of his paintings, titled Number 17A was sold for a whopping $200 million dollar.
Though he was a brilliant artist, still, Pollock struggled with alcoholism for a major part of his life. In 1945, he married Lee Krasner who was also an artist and they were a perfect fit for each other. She played a very important role in Pollock's life and it was her positive influence on his life that helped in continuation of his legacy. But it was the alcohol that changed everything for him...
At the age of 44, Pollock who was under alcohol influence met with an accident and he died on the spot in that accident. Four months after his death, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, a memorial was held for him, exhibiting all of his works in one place. A larger, more detailed exhibition of his work was held again in the same place in 1967. And in 1998 and 1999, his work was honored through great exhibitions held at MoMA and at The Tate in London.
After Marcel Duchamp's advice Pollock started painting on the canvas instead of the walls, as the canvas paintings were movable. "I took one look at it and I thought, 'Now that's great art,' and I knew Jackson was the greatest painter this country had produced. The catalog introducing his first exhibition described Pollock's talent as "... volcanic. It has fire. It is unpredictable. It is undisciplined. It spills out of itself in a mineral prodigality, not yet crystallized," said the art critic Clement Greenberg.
Pollock's most famous paintings were created during the drip period between 1947 and 1950. He found his fame when an article was published about in the famous magazine Life that said, "Is he the greatest living painter in the United States?" At the peak of his fame, Pollock abruptly abandoned the drip style." It was a 4-page article about his work and life that made his really popular.
"Until you don't see what's outside, you don't see what lies beneath you." Pollock was very much influenced by the work of Thomas Hart Benton, Pablo Picasso, and Joan Miro. Pollock was always experimenting with new ways to create something special. In his initial days, he used synthetic-resin-based paints called alkyd enamels, which was very common back then. But how did he come up with the action painting?
Pollock's technique of pouring and dripping paint was given the name of action painting. With this technique, Pollock was able to create a unique way to create art where the paint was literally flowing from his hands to the canvas. He chose the horizontal surface instead of regular vertical surface which gave him the upper hand on painting from all the directions.
In the article published in the 1956 edition of the Time magazine named Pollock "Jack the Dripper". "My painting does not come from the easel. I prefer to tack the unstretched canvas to the hard wall or the floor. I need the resistance of a hard surface. On the floor I am more at ease. I feel nearer, more part of the painting, since this way I can walk around it, work from the four sides and literally be in the painting.
I continue to get further away from the usual painter's tools such as easel, palette, brushes, etc. I prefer sticks, trowels, knives and dripping fluid paint or a heavy impasto with sand, broken glass or other foreign matter added.
When I am in my painting, I'm not aware of what I'm doing. It is only after a sort of 'get acquainted' period that I see what I have been about. I have no fear of making changes, destroying the image, etc., because the painting has a life of its own. I try to let it come through. It is only when I lose contact with the painting that the result is a mess. Otherwise, there is pure harmony, an easy give and take, and the painting comes out well." told Jason Pollock, My Painting, 1956.
When asked about his unique style Pollock said, "I feel nearer, more a part of the painting, since this way I can walk around it, work from the four sides and literally be in the painting. This is akin to the methods of the Indian sand painters of the West." Pollock was very much passionate about his art and there is a very interesting incident that happened between him and a young photographer which proves how much he loves the art.
In 1950, Hans Namuth, a young photographer was looking for an appointment with Jackson Pollock. He wanted to capture his art and him in the act. He wanted to capture the way he does everything and makes the most unique and beautiful arts that are par with European artists' work. Pollock promised that he would meet and start painting after he would have arrived. But when Namuth reached the place he saw Pollock standing near the finished painting.
"A dripping wet canvas covered the entire floor ... There was complete silence ... Pollock looked at the painting. Then, unexpectedly, he picked up can and paint brush and started to move around the canvas. It was as if he suddenly realized the painting was not finished. His movements, slow at first, gradually became faster and more dance like as he flung black, white, and rust colored paint onto the canvas. He completely forgot that Lee and I were there; he did not seem to hear the click of the camera shutter ... My photography session lasted as long as he kept painting, perhaps half an hour. In all that time, Pollock did not stop. How could one keep up this level of activity?" said Hans Namuth after he went to the studio.
"Pollock's finest paintings ... reveal that his all-over line does not give rise to positive or negative areas: we are not made to feel that one part of the canvas demands to be read as figure, whether abstract or representational, against another part of the canvas read as ground. There is not inside or outside to Pollock's line or the space through which it moves. ... Pollock has managed to free line not only from its function of representing objects in the world, but also from its task of describing or bounding shapes or figures, whether abstract or representational, on the surface of the canvas," Namuth added further.
William Shakespeare in Literature, and Sigmund Freud in psychology, Jackson Pollock became the most influential artist in American art. It was Pollock's work which made it possible for American painting to get compared by the influential paintings from the European artists. He was able to create a new scale and gave the surface and touch a new meaning. He changed the relationship between the space, pigment, edge, and drawing, through changing the structures of abstract art.
Not only he was an active artist but was also involved in debates related to the history of the world art starting from the Paleolithic and Indian art to Renaissance art. Pollock always remained inclined to these aspects of art and had this rebel nature of not following the herd. When nobody expected a change back then the world saw the birth of an American Prometheus.
Jackson Pollock changed the structure of abstract art. He changed the way people drew these paintings. With his hands and mind, he created a world of its own. If you would look at the painting Number 17A, you'll find that this painting gave birth to the so-called American expressionism. If you think his paintings are the real work then you are wrong because it is his performance with canvases which is the real work.
It's the process which is considered as the real work while he creates the paintings. According to some experts, you can actually see his footprints in some of his paintings which tells that when Pollock created the paintings he was so much into the process that he literally used to walk on them to create the abstract while he danced and forced the colors to create something beautiful through his body movements. It's like a person dancing to his own tune.
Many of those who saw him working said that when he created the painting he used to dance around the canvas which to many seemed like a performing a mystical ritual. When he was in the room, he used to be a different person unaware of the surroundings and people around him and he had this habit of being unstoppable until he was finished.
Just like other artists who have a habit of leaving some clue or marks that can tell that this particular painting belongs to this artist, but Pollock was different as he never left a single clue in any of his paintings. He left it to the viewers to see the painting and later judge what it is and who made it. He left it to the viewers to make anything of the paintings as they felt feasible.