The catalyst that sparked its emergence was Neiman's acquisition, one day in 1953, of partially used cans of enamel paints that were being
discarded by the custodian of the apartment house adjacent to his.
The works at Cheim & Read belong to a series known as the Pigment Paintings, so named because they were made with paint that Held mixed from 100 - pound sacks of pigment
discarded by the Museum of Modern Art, where he was working as a
custodian.