Contents
Willem de Kooning
Painting Woman I and helping shape Abstract Expressionism in New York.
Excavation · Woman I
- Born
- 24 April 1904
- Birthplace
- Rotterdam, Netherlands
- Died
- 19 March 1997
More people
Willem de Kooning
Dutch-American painter whose vigorous brushwork moved between recognisable figures and abstraction.
Early life
Commercial apprenticeship
Left school to train with a commercial art firm in Rotterdam.
Evening study
Attended evening classes at Rotterdam’s art academy before emigrating.
Career
- 1926–1930s
Arrival in America
Reached the United States as a stowaway and supported himself through commercial work.
- 1940s–1950s
New York breakthrough
Developed abstract paintings and the forceful figures of his Woman series.
- 1960s–1980s
Long Island studio
Worked in East Hampton, expanding into sculpture and increasingly open paintings.
Selected work
Excavation
A dense abstract composition of interlocking forms.
Woman I
A confrontational figure built through repeated revision and energetic brushwork.
Interchange
An abstraction reflecting his movement between figures and urban forms.
Beyond work
An artistic partnership
Married fellow painter Elaine de Kooning in 1943.
Immigrant experience
Lived in the United States for decades before becoming a citizen in 1962.
Sources & photo credit
Biography and references ↗Biography and contributions ↗Photo: Antony di Gesu, photographer. Public domain · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
