Automatism refers to the state of acting or moving without conscious control or awareness. It is when someone does something automatically, as if on autopilot, without thinking about it or making a conscious decision. Full definition
Perhaps because of his work's refusal of automatisms of any kind: holding on to the painters» conscious act of painting, and at the same time withdrawing the ego from the painting process. (hyperallergic.com)
In addition, he encountered the activities of the Surrealism movement, notably its use of automatism in art, illustrated by techniques like automatic drawing. (visual-arts-cork.com)
Although it was the surrealist artists who helped to legitimize the unconscious as a subject for Pollock, as early as 1942, he already seems to have begun using psychic automatism in a wholly different way. (visual-arts-cork.com)