| 1. | (sometimes initial capital letters ) Also called tachism. a style of American abstract expressionist painting typified esp. in the works of Jackson Pollack and Willem de Kooning in the 1940s, in which the furiously energetic and free application of the paint is seen as being expressive of the psychological and emotional state of the artist at the moment of creation. |
| 2. | abstract expressionism. |
| action painting n. A style of abstract painting that uses techniques such as the dribbling or splashing of paint to achieve a spontaneous effect. action painter n. |