Among the leading painters of post-World War II Abstract Expressionist
             movement, Franz Kline developed his own highly personal form of art based more on
             "spontaneous expression in abstract design of the artist's psychic states."1 Abstract
             expressionism saw representation as the exact opposite of their main aim in painting.
             "Formal issues" such as color, lines, and shapes without recognizable representation is
             what Kline, like many other abstract expressionists, strove to portray in their paintings.
             They were individuals that were foraging their own way into the art world. Mainly an
             artist of impact, Kline's work was forceful and boldly dramatic, which characterized his
             aggressiveness and raw energy. Best known for his robust black-and-white abstractions,
             his zealous brushwork seemed to manifest the energy and gestures produced in the act of
             painting. In this paper I will argue how Kline's unique form, also referred to as action
             painting, was affected by his background and other artists, how his work was not
             influenced or represented Chinese calligraphy, and why he should be set aside from other
             The Pennsylvania native originally was a representational painter, that used a style
             mixed of Cubism and Social Realism. He attempted to capture the energy of city life
             while going to school at Boston University and Heatherly's School of Art in London,
             before settling in New York. Up until the 1940's Kline painted urban scenes and figures
             in a conventional, realist style. A couple years after moving to New York, he sparked an
             interest in abstraction and reduced the elements of his old style. However, the turning
             point of his career came once he enlarged some black-and-white drawings through a
             projector, and recognized the expressive power to which his style possessed in large scale,
             and thus decided to abandon representation all together. Although his emphasis on
             black-and-white painting,...