Oil painting -> List of Painters -> Willem de Kooning

Willem de Kooning

Personal Details

Name

Willem de Kooning

Place of birth

Rotterdam, Netherlands

Date of Birth

April 24, 1904

Date of Death

March 19, 1997 (aged 92)

Nationality

Dutch, American

Field

Abstract expressionism

Museum

Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum of American Art

Works

Woman I, Easter Monday, Attic, Excavation



Willem de Kooning was a Dutch-American artist and one of the leading figures of the Abstract Expressionist movement in the 1940s and 1950s. He was a prolific painter who worked in a variety of media, including oil, gouache, charcoal, and lithography. His works are characterized by bold and gestural brushwork and thick layers of paint, often applied with vigorous, sweeping brushstrokes. He is best known for his abstract expressionist masterpieces, such as the 1952 painting Woman I.

De Kooning was born in Rotterdam, Netherlands in 1904. He studied painting at the Academie voor Beeldende Kunsten in Rotterdam from 1921 to 1926 and then moved to the United States in 1926, where he worked as a commercial artist and illustrator. He was heavily influenced by the work of Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse and developed a more abstract style of painting that focused on the expressive qualities of color, line, and form.

During the 1940s and 1950s, de Kooning developed his signature style of abstract expressionism, which he used to depict the human figure in an abstracted way. He was one of the most influential artists of the New York School, which included artists such as Jackson Pollock and Franz Kline. His works, such as the 1950 painting Excavation, are characterized by their dynamic brushstrokes, which express a sense of motion and energy.

Throughout his career, de Kooning's work was exhibited in galleries and museums around the world. He was awarded the Guggenheim Fellowship in 1952 and the National Medal of Arts in 1983. He was also a visiting professor at the University of California, Berkeley and the University of Arizona.

In his later years, de Kooning's painting style changed, becoming more detailed and representational. He still utilized his signature brushstrokes and energetic brushwork, but he also began to incorporate recognizable figures and landscapes into his paintings. His later works, such as the 1984 painting Untitled XXIV, are characterized by their vivid color and energetic brushwork.

Willem de Kooning was one of the most influential and important artists of the 20th century. His bold and gestural brushwork and thick layers of paint express a sense of motion and energy that makes his works instantly recognizable. He was a prolific and innovative painter who changed the face of abstract expressionism and modern art.

 

Works Of Willem de Kooning:

kooning-facts

kooning-revocable

kooning-painting