Willem de Kooning, Two Standing Men (1938), oil and charcoal on canvas, 61 x 45 inches.Formerly collection of Thomas Hess.
Willem de Kooning, Asheville (1948), oil and enamel on cardboard, approx. 26 x 32 inches.The Phillips Collection, Washington D.C.
Painting his entire life, de Kooning was in his forties when he had his first one-man show. His abstract style received excellent reviews from critics, and in 1948, influential critic Clement Greenberg called him "one of the four or five most important painters in the country."
In 1953, de Kooning exhibited this painting:
Willem de Kooning, Woman I (1950-52), oil on canvas, approx. 6'4" x 58"
Willem de Kooning, Woman I (1950-52), oil on canvas, approx. 6'4" x 58"The female form, one of the most cherished forms and subjects of Western art, has been outlined with thick blue, green, black, yellow and orange slashes. She is seated, baring her breasts and teeth. de Kooning's brushstrokes blur the figure into the background but the intensity of her gaze keeps our eyes transfixed to her form. Look at the foot at the bottom edge of the canvas. The pink paint for the ankle and foot pushes out of the blue strap of her shoe, towards the viewer. Her hands, crossed in her lap, are long and claw-like. The physicality in de Kooning's paint application is evident on every inch of the canvas - vertical, horizontal, thick, thin, fast lines. His Woman is mesmerizing, and also a bit terrifying.
The subject of his painting is clear: the human form, and it was a subject he'd painted before and would continue to paint for the rest of his life. However, there was (and remains) much speculation into de Kooning's specific inspiration. At the time of its debut, critics surmised that the menancing appearance of Woman was inspired by a deep-seated fear and/or hatred of women.
The subjects of the Woman series bare their teeth and confront the viewer with enormous eyes, and the speed of de Kooning's brushstrokes suggested knife wounds. Compared to this, even Manet's Olympia looks downright cuddly. Speculators looked to his mother, a Dutch barmaid, and his wife, Elaine, an artist and critic, as sources for any indications of these feelings. Elaine eventually forced Hans Namuth to take a picture of her next to the woman "to establish once and for all that I did not pose for these ferocious women":
Photo taken by Hans Namuth (1953).
But even Elaine was surprised that "I and the painted lady seemed [like] mother and daughter. We're even smiling the same way."
Yet de Kooning never publicly admitted that his art was about anything but relating the eternal form, the human figure, to his everyday experiences: "The Women had to do with the female painted through all the ages ... I look at them now [in 1960] and they seem vociferous and ferocious. I think it had to do with the idea of the idol, the oracle, and above all, the hilariousness of it." His Women were based on de Kooning's personal experiences with, yes - the ones he knew and the ones he observed: pin-up models, the women shopping on 14th street, and perhaps yes, even his wife and mother. And beyond the immediate experiences, de Kooning also looked to the past:
Standing Sumerian male worshipper, c. 2750-2600 BCE, alabaster and black limestone,
11 5/8", from Mesopotamia.
Acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1940, New York City.
Venus of Willendorf, c. 20,000 BCE, limestone, height 4 3/8" .
Discovered in Austria in 1908.
Naturhistorisches Museum, Vienna.
Though de Kooning did mention that his paintings also reminded him of water: his childhood home in the Netherlands, or a friend's home in East Hampton. He said that he would "get a feeling" of the ocean when painting a Woman picture in the city.
The subjects of the Woman series bare their teeth and confront the viewer with enormous eyes, and the speed of de Kooning's brushstrokes suggested knife wounds. Compared to this, even Manet's Olympia looks downright cuddly. Speculators looked to his mother, a Dutch barmaid, and his wife, Elaine, an artist and critic, as sources for any indications of these feelings. Elaine eventually forced Hans Namuth to take a picture of her next to the woman "to establish once and for all that I did not pose for these ferocious women":
Photo taken by Hans Namuth (1953).But even Elaine was surprised that "I and the painted lady seemed [like] mother and daughter. We're even smiling the same way."
Yet de Kooning never publicly admitted that his art was about anything but relating the eternal form, the human figure, to his everyday experiences: "The Women had to do with the female painted through all the ages ... I look at them now [in 1960] and they seem vociferous and ferocious. I think it had to do with the idea of the idol, the oracle, and above all, the hilariousness of it." His Women were based on de Kooning's personal experiences with, yes - the ones he knew and the ones he observed: pin-up models, the women shopping on 14th street, and perhaps yes, even his wife and mother. And beyond the immediate experiences, de Kooning also looked to the past:
Standing Sumerian male worshipper, c. 2750-2600 BCE, alabaster and black limestone,11 5/8", from Mesopotamia.
Acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1940, New York City.
Venus of Willendorf, c. 20,000 BCE, limestone, height 4 3/8" .Discovered in Austria in 1908.
Naturhistorisches Museum, Vienna.
1 comment:
Thank you this introduction to de Kooning. As art has never been more than a passing interest of mine - I found drawn to learn more about the artist and his works.
I found it particularly engaging as a reader that you used another piece of art (Manet's Olymipa) for me to more fully grasp the shock value of his subject matter and its impact on those who viewed it.
Thank you!
Post a Comment