The Essential Willem de Kooning

120 Pages·1999·14.976 MB·English

by  Catherine J. Morris

fcSSE/V;.
Willem Kooning
de
BY CATHERINE MORRIS
U.S.A. $12.95
Canada$16.95
THE ESSENTIAL
WILLEM DE KOONING
byCatherine Morris
Here's the tale ofa 22-year-old Dutch
immigrant who illegally stowed away to
America, only to emerge as one ofthe
towering figures ofmodern art. Ifever
you've seen an abstract painting and
wondered, "Whatgives here?" then
de Kooning's storywill open your eyes
heart.This book is the essence of
Willem de Kooning,who transformed
the wavwe look at the world todav
Discover thejoys ofhis:
Freakywomen's faces
Breathtaking colors and their impact
on the viewer
Lvricallv beautiful laterworks
Onthejacket:
Willemde Kooning. Woman V(detail), 1952-
NationalGallervofAustralia.Canberra
57illustrations, including48platesinfull'coloi

^
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Willem de Kooning
BY CATHERINE MORRIS
the Wonderland
PRESS
HarryN.Abrams, Inc., Publishers
THE Wonderland
PRESS
The Essential is atrademark
ofTheWonderlandPress,NewYork
The Essential serieshasbeencreatedbyTheWonderlandPress
Series Producer:John Campbell
Series Editor:JuliaMoore
ProjectManager:AdrienneMoucheraud
Series Design:TheWonderlandPress
LibraryofCongressCatalogCardNumber:98-074610
ISBN0-8362-1933-3 (AndrewsMcMeel)
ISBN0-8109-5811-2 (HarryN.Abrams,Inc.)
Copyright©1999TheWonderlandPress
Allworks© 1999Willemde KooningRevocableTrust/
Artists RightsSociety(ARS),NewYork
©
LavenderMist 1999 Pollock-KrasnerFoundation/
Artists Rights Society(ARS),NewYork
Publishedin 1999byHarryN.Abrams,Incorporated,NewYork
All rightsreserved.Nopartofthecontentsofthisbookmay
bereproducedwithoutthewrittenpermissionofthepublisher
DistributedbyAndrewsMcMeelPublishing
KansasCity,Missouri64111-7701
Unlesscaption notesotherwise,works areoiloncanvas
Printed in HongKong
H
HarrvN.Abrams,Inc.
100 FifthAvenue
NewYork,NY10011
www.abramsbooks.com
Contents
A
real hottie 5
Greatwith lines 7
ADutchman in Rotterdam 10
The illegal stowaway 16
Gorkyrules! 21
Finding his way 30
Hello, Elaine 35
Thewoman thing 36
Jackson Pollockenters 42
&
Black White times 54
Abstractionblooms 57
Women,women, morewomen 63
Color, color, more color 77
Ah, the Hamptons 81
Abusyboy 91
Thosewomen again 94
Bronze replaces paint 96
Personal challenges 101
Finalyears 108
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This is...Art?
Don'tyou hate itwhen people rave and carry on about paintings that opposite
lookutterlymeaninglesstoyou?There's asplashoforange andasplotch UntitledV
1977
ofyellow—,with acrestofstormyblue and squooshes ofgray, andzigzags 79 'Ax 69 'A
ofgreen andthepaintingispreposterouslytitled... UntitledV. What (200.34x
cm>
giveshere? This isart??Peoplepay millionsforthis?? '
Well,yes theydo, and maybe the title isn't so preposterous.
Ifyou're already a big fan of modern art, fantastic! Hopefully, this
bookwillfeedyourpassionfortheseworks. Butifyoulookatabstract
paintings and think, "Whydo people like this stuff? What'sgoing on
here?'\ then this book is for you. It will forever change the way you
— —
look at and feel about modern art. And you'll have a new best
friend the next time youvisit an art museum: the modern-artwing!
De Kooning Hot
is
Willem de Kooning (1904-1997) is one ofthe hottest painters ofthe
20th century, and as you read his story, any discomfort you have with
"modern" artwillvanish. His energyWAXpullyou into this marvelously
strangeworldofabstract art and graduallyletyou enjoymodern art on
yourterms,in awayyou can relate to. Once the dooris open,you'llbe
open, you'll be on the other side and will have hours offun at future
museum exhibitions and in conversations with friends. (Warning:
Once you knowwhat's going on in this art,you'll smile when you hear
how others explain it. Instead ofbeing bewildered, you11 be the one
deciphering the code and interacting personallywith the canvases.)
The main reason people are puzzled by modern art is that there is
littlerecognizableinit. Noneofthestandardsignsthathelpusexplore
—
a painting seem to be present no horizon, no landscape, no human
figures. Faced with such disorienting canvases, the best way to begin
enjoying these works is to forget about meaning.
A Sexual Response
You'll actuallyfeel anemotionalchargewhenyoulookataworkbyde
Kooning. His colors and energywill arouse inyou a kind ofsubliminal
firestorm ofsensuality, andyou'll soon knowwhypeople pay millions
for his art. Strip away the notions ofseriousness or importance or an
artist's place in art history; go with yourgut. Laugh at the marvelous
ridiculousness of a canvas; enjoy the artist's fevered brushstrokes;
indulge in the dialogue that he invites with his work.
De Kooningis known as anAbstract Expressionist (we'llgetto this in
a moment), even though he rarely made a painting that was purely
abstract or that lacked all identifiable subject matter. Natural refer-
ences usually lurk somewhere in a de Kooning canvas or drawing,