Willem de Kooning Art
American, Dutch, 1904-1997
As the de facto leader of the New York avant-garde art movement of the 1950s known as Abstract Expressionism, Dutch-American painter Willem de Kooning blended figuration and abstraction in a revolutionary manner that has resonated for decades. His best-known paintings, which were most often of women but gesturally abstract, were unique and incredibly influential at the time. Today, de Kooning is widely considered one of the most important artists of the 20th century.
De Kooning trained in fine and commercial arts at the Rotterdam Academy in his hometown of Rotterdam, the Netherlands, before immigrating to the United States in 1926. His first job in America was as a house painter in New Jersey, and the period left an indelible impression on him as he brought large brushes, loose strokes and fluid paints into his work as an artist. He also worked on public murals under President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration (WPA) program in the 1930s. De Kooning’s studies weren’t executed but they included some of his first abstractions, which showed the influence of like-minded artists as well as the music of the Jazz Age. His broad foundation in classical drawing and physical labor are evident even in the most abstract of his works, which amounted to a fusion of Cubism, Expressionism and Surrealism.
It was in New York that de Kooning found the space and an abundance of inspiration to pursue art full time. Surrounded by prominent artists like Jackson Pollock, Arshile Gorky, Lee Krasner and Fernand Léger, de Kooning drew from the freedom and boldness with which they all approached their work. In 1943, he married Elaine de Kooning, a versatile and immensely talented New York painter with a significant role in the Abstract Expressionist movement.
A major motif in de Kooning’s work is the deconstructed female form. A collection of paintings demonstrative of this is now known as his “Woman” series of the early 1950s, which remains controversial more than half a century later. Drawing inspiration from photography in magazines and using vivid colors and expressive brushstrokes to unforgettable effect, de Kooning depicted his subjects as grotesque, sexualized and loosely abstracted forms, which many critics deemed angry and misogynistic. But it is this very fearlessness in visual and conceptual experimentation that made de Kooning a crucial figure of Abstract Expressionism.
Today, de Kooning’s work is among the most coveted art in the world. His Interchange (1955), with its bold lines and shapes executed in primary colors, is one of the most expensive paintings ever sold.
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Artist: Willem de Kooning
Willem de Kooning, Untitled (Reclining Female Nude)
By Willem de Kooning
Located in San Francisco, CA
With such fondness, 20th-century artistic titan Willem de Kooning gifted this charcoal sketch on paper to his close East Hampton friends Roger and Lucia Wilcox...
Category
1960s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Paper, Charcoal
Rare exhibition print (Hand Signed by Willem de Kooning), Estate of Alan York
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
Willem de Kooning
de Kooning in East Hampton (Hand Signed), from Estate of Alan York, 1978
Offset lithograph poster (Hand signed by de Kooning)
Boldly signed in green marker on the f...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Permanent Marker, Lithograph, Offset
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Willem de Kooning rare 1970s Abstract Expressionist lithograph, pencil signed/N
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
Willem de Kooning
Annual Spring Invitational Art Exhibition (limited edition, hand signed & numbered by Willem de Kooning), 1979
Offset lithograph (hand signed and numbered)
Signed a...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph, Offset
Untitled (Two Figures)
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
A very good impression of this scarce offset lithograph on cream wove paper. Artist's proof, aside from the edition of 100. Signed in ink, lower right, and inscribed "A/P" in pencil,...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph, Offset
The Preacher
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
A very good impression of this scarce lithograph on Arches buff paper. Signed, dated and numbered 17/60 in pencil by de Kooning. Printed by Hollander's Workshop, Inc., New York. Co-p...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Poems by Frank O'Hara
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
Impressive portfolio with 17 lithographs on Japanese Kitakata appliqué with de Kooning's authorized facsimile signature and numbered "23" in pencil on the justification page. Publish...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
POEMS
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Portland, ME
O'Hara, Frank. POEMS. Limited Editions Club, NY, 1988. Edition of 550 copies. Illustrated with 17 original lithographs by Willem De Kooning, and with his authorized facsimile signatu...
Category
1980s Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Valentine
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
Lithograph on Suzuki paper. Signed, dated and numbered 38/47 in pencil by de Kooning. Printed by Hollanders Workshop, New York. Published by Knoedler, New York.
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
The Thinker
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Miami, FL
A large charcoal-on-paper rendering by arguably one of America's most influential artists. It comes from the pioneering Allan Stone Galleries, who ...
Category
1960s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Paper, Charcoal
Composition for Lisa, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Willem de Kooning (1904-1997)
Title: Composition for Lisa
Year: 1984
Medium: Color silkscreen on wove paper
Edition: 250, plus proofs
Size: 17.75 x 23.25 inches
Condition: Ex...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Clam Digger
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
Clam Digger, 1967
Signed and numbered in pencil
Lithograph
Image size: 12 in x 15.9 inches
Sheet: 17.5 x 22.5 inches
Edition XIII of XX
Category
1960s Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Untitled (Litho #7)
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
A very good impression of this scarce and early lithograph on Arches. Edition of 50. Printed at Hollander's Workshop, Inc., New York, with the blind stamp lower right.
Provenance: ...
Category
1960s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Landscape at Stanton Street
By Willem de Kooning
Located in London, GB
Lithograph, 1971, on paper, signed and dated in pencil, numbered from the edition of 60,
published by Hollanders Workshop and Fourcade, New York, 75.7 x 56 cm. (30 x 2 2in.)
Category
1970s American Modern Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
For Lisa
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
A very good impression of this color lithograph on cream laid Japan paper. Signed and numbered 48/250 in pencil by de Kooning. Published by Brand X Editions, Ltd., New York, with the...
Category
1880s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Color, Lithograph
In the Sky, Abstract Expressionist Offset Lithograph Poster by Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Long Island City, NY
Willem de Kooning, Dutch/American (1904 - 1997) - In the Sky, Year: 1982, Medium: Offset Lithograph Poster, Size: 26 in. x 30.5 in. (66.04 cm x 77.47 cm), Frame Size: 27.5 x 30...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition, Poems, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Auburn Hills, MI
Lithograph on papier Kitakata à la main, mounted on papier Cartiere Enrico Magnani à la main paper, as issued. Paper Size: 23.5 x 19 inches. Inscription: Unsigned and unnumbered, as ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Rainbow - Thelonious Monk - Devil at the Keyboard by Willem De Kooning 1972
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Willem de Kooning, Dutch/American (1904 - 1997)
Title: Rainbow - Thelonious Monk - Devil at the Keyboard
Year: 1972
Medium: Six Color Lithograph on Thin Velin, printed signat...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
"The Devil at the Keyboard" 1976 hand-signed lithograph by Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Boca Raton, FL
"The Devil at the Keyboard" 1976 color lithograph artist proof. Abstract portrait of Thelonious Monk by Willem de Kooning. Hand signed de Kooning and numbered A/P in front lower righ...
Category
1970s Abstract Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Rainbow: Thelonious Monk, Devil at the Keyboard, Willem de Kooning
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Willem de Kooning (1904-1997)
Title: Rainbow: Thelonious Monk, Devil at the Keyboard
Year: 1976
Medium: Color lithograph on cream wove Beckett paper
Edition: 125, plus proofs...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
For Lisa
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Fairlawn, OH
For Lisa
Color lithograph, 1984
Signed in pencil lower left (see photo)
Numbered lower right corner
Published to benefit the Los Angeles Children's Museum
Printed by Brand X Editions...
Category
1980s Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Clam Digger
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
Lithograph on Arches. This impression is an Artist's proof, aside from the edition of 100. Signed and inscribed "A.P." in pencil by de Kooning. Printed and published by Hollander's W...
Category
1960s Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Composition for Lisa
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
Edition of 250
Signed and numbered in pencil
Published to benefit the Los Angeles Children's Museum
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
Quatre Lithographies
By Willem de Kooning
Located in London, GB
The complete set of four lithographs in colours on Arches wove paper, 1986, each signed and dated in pencil, from the edition of 100 (plus 50 numbered with Roman numerals), in the or...
Category
1980s Abstract Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Lithograph
The Man and the Big Blonde
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Missouri, MO
Willem de Kooning (Dutch, American, 1904-1997)
The Man and the Big Blonde, 1982
Offset Lithograph in Colors on Wove Paper
Numbered in Pencil LXXVII/CL (77/150) Lower Left
25.125 x 30...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Paper, Color, Offset
Untitled (Beach)
By Willem de Kooning
Located in New York, NY
A very good impression of this scarce color screenprint on Arches with strong colors. Signed and numbered 9/75 in pencil. Printed by Ives-Sillman, New Haven, with the blind stamp low...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Color, Screen
Woman in a Rowboat
By Willem de Kooning
Located in Palm Desert, CA
A painting by Willem de Kooning. "Woman in a Rowboat" is an abstract, oil on paper laid on masonite painting executed in a lush and swirling palette primarily of greens, whites, beiges and yellow and depicting an abstracted, nude woman in a boat by Post War artist Willem de Kooning. "Woman in a Rowboat" is a seminal work by de Kooning that has a new fluidity which relates to his next major series of Woman paintings which he began in 1964. Signed lower left, "de Kooning."
Provenance:
Allan Stone Gallery, New York
Private Collection, New York
Private Collection, Arizona
Exhibition:
North Hampton, Smith College Museum of Art; Cambridge, The New Gallery, Charles Hayden Memorial Library, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Willem de Kooning: a Retrospective from Public and Private Collections, April – June 1965 (Cambridge only) New York, Allan Stone Gallery, De Kooning/Cornell, February – March 1965
Rotterdam, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, American Paintings, September - October 1966, cat. no. 26
Dublin, The Royal Dublin Society, Rosc'67:The Poetry of Vision, November – December 1967, p. 201, illustrated
Detroit, J.L. Hudson, Willem de Kooning: Three Decades of Painting, March – April 1968, no. 31 (exhibition checklist)
Easthampton, Gild Hall...
Category
1960s Post-War Willem de Kooning Art
Materials
Masonite, Paper, Oil
Willem De Kooning art for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Willem de Kooning art available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Willem de Kooning in lithograph, offset print, screen print and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the abstract style. Not every interior allows for large Willem de Kooning art, so small editions measuring 6 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Raymond Parker, Paul Jenkins, and André Lanskoy. Willem de Kooning art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $150 and tops out at $90,000, while the average work can sell for $6,000.
Artists Similar to Willem de Kooning
Questions About Willem de Kooning Art
- 1stDibs ExpertSeptember 16, 2024Interchange by Willem de Kooning is likely worth at least $300 million. That's how much the painting sold for through a private sale in 2015. De Kooning produced the painting in 1955 and sold it for just $5,000. The piece is an abstract landscape that uses bold colors, characteristic of his work in the Abstract Expressionist style. On 1stDibs, find a range of Willem de Kooning art.