Sacrifice, legacy and plagiarism: Ian Nicholas and Cian Griffin on staging Lee

Telling the story of Lee Krasner, artist and wife of American painter Jackson Pollock, Lee is a theatre production that explores the life and artworks of the woman behind the great painter, and the sacrifices she made for her partner. Set thirteen years after Pollock’s death, told through a fictional conversation between Lee and an aspiring art student Hank, the play examines the tensions between plagiarism and originality in the act of creativity and how much a successful artist relies on talent and how much on who they know. We spoke to writer Cian Griggin and producer and designer Ian Nicholas about the production

What first drew you to Lee Krasner’s story, and why did you want to bring her to life on stage?

Ian Nicholas (IN): 25 years ago, I saw the 2000 film “Pollock”, directed by Ed Harris and I found Lee Krasner to be just as compelling a character as Pollock and I wondered what happened to her after his death. Along with my OnBook Theatre directing partner, Jason Moore, we wanted to produce a play set in the art world. We’d worked with Cian Griffin before and asked him to collaborate and write the play.

Cian Griffin (CG): I like to write strong female characters, so I was excited to work on this project. Lee Krasner was a formidable woman, she didn’t suffer fools gladly and when you have that combination of strong personality and creative force, well, she practically demanded to be brought to life.

Many people know Jackson Pollock but not Lee Krasner—what do you hope audiences will discover about her through this play?

CG: Because Lee was often overshadowed by her very famous husband, I thought it only fair to shine a spotlight on her. Her role in Pollock’s success was immeasurable, and I hope that people will see that. But more than that, I hope that the audience see her as an accomplished artist in her own right, independent from Jackson.  She already was part of the art scene when she met him. I believe she would have been a recognized, successful artist on her own, even if she had never met Pollock. 

The play is set thirteen years after Pollock’s death. Why was this moment in time the right backdrop for the story?

CG: It was important to set it far enough after Pollock’s death that Lee is firmly settled into a new way of life. She’s not in mourning. She’s claimed the barn studio (which formally belonged to Pollock) for herself and consequently, with all the space and light, her work expands and evolves in ways it couldn’t when she was relegated to painting in the spare bedroom. She is an independent artist in her own right, no longer in the shadows of her famous husband and on the brink of achieving the recognition she deserves.

The idea of originality versus plagiarism in art is very current. How does the play explore that tension?

CG: The backdrop of the play is the art world, in particular, the Abstract Expressionist movement that grew out of New York City in the 1940s and 50s. When you’re dealing with a newly emerging art movement, it’s not a solo endeavour. It takes a group of artists, gallery owners, art critics and patrons to create that movement and propel it forward. In that world, Pollock, Krasner, Mark Rothko, Willem de Kooning, Franz Kline, Clyfford Still, were all living in NYC and actively meeting, discussing, exchanging ideas and looking at each other’s work. It’s impossible to gauge how much they influenced each other and/or subconsciously ‘borrowed’ from one another’s work. It’s hard to believe there wouldn’t be some sort of cross pollination occurring that led to competitiveness and jealousy. But the lines are even more blurred when it comes to Abstract Expressionism. The movement is based on expression of emotion and it’s difficult to police how one artist can express their feelings versus another. Who is to say that two people cannot express their feelings in the exact same way? 

You’ve included recreated versions of Krasner’s artwork in the show. How important was it to make her art part of the storytelling?

IN: My first thought was you can’t have a play about art without art. As a designer, it presents a wonderful opportunity to create something visually stunning that you don’t often see in Fringe theatre. But as I immersed myself into the process of recreating her paintings, I realised that this was so much more than just art on canvas. The Abstract Expressionist movement of which Lee was a key founding member, is about expression of emotion and the unconscious mind. The layperson might see a bunch of lines or squiggles on canvas. But if you understand what was happening with this particular art movement, it was highly introspective. What Lee was capturing on canvas were her actual feelings. In a way, her paintings are snapshots of her mind and heart, as they stood at that particular time. As the play evolves, certain paintings are discussed, so those had to be present on set. And they are always discussed in terms of how she was feeling at the time. As she herself said, "My painting is so autobiographical, if anyone can take the trouble to read it.”

How do you balance fact and fiction when writing about real artists and their lives?

CG: Both Ian and I did a lot of research to get the facts correct. All the references in the play are accurate. For instance, “Portrait in Green” was the only large canvas she worked on in 1969 (when the play is set). The watercolours she shows were also produced that year and the people she refers to, Mark Patiky, Douglass Howell, Hans Hoffman etc are all real people who played a role in her life. The character of Hank is fictional, although his circumstances are based in reality. Lee and Jackson moved out to Springs, NY in 1945 and at that time, it was a very small town with a local grocery store. It would have been a mom-and-pop operation, so Hank’s parents own and run the shop and Hank delivers for them. It’s a realistic way to insert a fictional character into the mix. Naturally, we are not privy to the actual conversations that happened between Lee and Jackson, but based on all the research, I wrote what I believe could easily have transpired between them. For me, as a writer, as long as you honour the person and keep to the documented facts, the characters come to life and write themselves. 

What do you hope audiences walk away thinking or feeling?

CG: I hope audiences leave wanting to know more about Lee Krasner and her legacy, not just regarding her own body of work but in terms of her dedication to the Abstract Expressionist movement.

IN: And I hope it provokes an interest in them to go see an art show, visit a museum, a gallery and perhaps buy a piece of original art, even if it’s just small piece by a local artist in a street fair. It’s so important that we support the Arts. After all, rather like Mathematics, Art is a universal language.

Lee is at Park Theatre from 24^th September to 18^th October, presented by OnBook Theatre in association with Park Theatre. https://parktheatre.co.uk/events/lee/