Janet Sobel: The 'Housewife' Who Pioneered Dripping Before Pollock

Janet Sobel, a Ukrainian-born artist who emigrated to the United States, has been posthumously recognized for her pioneering use of the dripping technique, which is often attributed to Jackson Pollock. Sobel began painting at the age of 45, after the death of her husband, and her work predates Pollock's by at least a year. In 1945, at Peggy Guggenheim's Art of This Century Gallery, Pollock was captivated by Sobel's canvases featuring small schematic faces amidst fine black lines that appeared to be poured directly onto the canvas. Critic Clement Greenberg later admitted in writing that he and Pollock had admired these revolutionary paintings 'furtively.' The art world took eighty years to acknowledge Sobel's contribution to abstract expressionism. This recognition challenges the official narratives of art history, highlighting the overlooked role of women artists in the movement.