The painting was created on fibreboard, also known as composition board, measuring 8’ x 4’. For the paint, Pollock chose to use liquid paints.[1] More specifically, they were synthetic resin paints (gloss enamel)[2] but are referred to as oil paints for classification of the work. On inspection it was grey, brown, white and yellow paint drizzled in a way that many people still perceive as a "dense bird’s nest".[3] Initial reactions to the work by the uninitiated were underwhelming:
You spent money on that? The initial reaction of Ted Dragon, Ossorio's partner.[4]