Although at first the thought that CIA supported modern artists during the Cold War was perceived as a joke, it actually holds to be true. In the 1950s and 1960s, modern art was unpopular among many, even Truman himself criticized abstract art, "If that's art, then I'm a Hottentot."
In 1947, the CIA began to look into culture and art as a form of attacking the Soviet Union. The CIA established the Propaganda Assets Inventory which controlled newspapers, magazines, and organizations. In 1950, the International Organization Division was set up to subsidize jazz artists, films, and artists of abstract expressionism. Abstract expressionism at the time was largely associated with anarchism. Jackson Pollock was well known for his "drip style" and for representing the abstract expressionism movement. The CIA also established the Congress of Cultural Freedom which funded artists, intellectuals, writers, historians, and poets. The Congress of Cultural Freedom supported magazines that praised abstract expressionist artists and would provide funds for tour exhibitions. To generate funds, the CIA reached out to millionaires such as Nelson Rockefeller who supported this art and named it "free enterprise painting."
Now, the real question we all are wondering is, "Why?" The Cold War was a different war, it was a psychological war, one where it could be effectively won by deceiving not only the enemy, but also the people at home. The Cold War was a matter of prestige rather than a display of realistic abilities. For example, Reagan advocated behind the idea of Star Wars, thus showing the Soviets that America was capable of such high technology and therefore discouraging the Soviets when they weren't able to stay ahead in the arms race. Similarly, the CIA aimed to use modern art as a psychological weapon towards the Soviet Union. They aimed to portray through movements such as abstract expressionism that American art reflected the democratic ideas of the nation.
As first chief of the CIA's International Organizations Division, Tom Braden states,
"We wanted to unite all the people who were writers, who were musicians, who were artists, to demonstrate that the West and the United States was devoted to freedom of expression and to intellectual achievement, without any rigid barriers as to what you must write, and what you must say, and what you must do, and what you must paint, which was what was going on in the Soviet Union. I think it was the most important division that the agency had, and I think that it played an enormous role in the Cold War."
Thus, it is important to remember that behind every physical war there is a psychological game played between the leaders of the two nations. The CIA's devotion to these artists goes to show how influential art and culture can be in times of need. Hence, this is often termed, "The Cultural Cold War."
Sources:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/modern-art-was-cia-weapon-1578808.html
http://gizmodo.com/5686753/how-the-cia-spent-secret-millions-turning-modern-art-into-a-cold-war-arsenal
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_CIA_and_the_Cultural_Cold_War
https://www.nytimes.com/books/00/04/23/reviews/000423.23joffet.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackson_Pollock#1950s
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