Willem de Kooning

Modarco S. A., Switzerland (acquired from the artist)
Stephen Hahn, New York and California (acquired from the above)
Thence by descent to the present owner

Paris, Galeries des Arts, De Kooning, October - November 1975, illustrated in color

Harold Rosenberg, De Kooning, New York, 1973, pl. 137 with foldout of detail, illustrated in color and pp. 25 - 27, illustrated in color (in the artist's studio, The Springs, Long Island, 1972)
Exh. Cat., New York, C&M Arts, Willem de Kooning, Selected Paintings and Sculpture, 1964 - 1973, 2000, illustrated in color on the cover (in the artist's studio, The Springs, Long Island, 1972)
Exh. Cat., Ft. Lauderdale, Museum of Art, Willem de Kooning in Process, 2000, fig. no. 3, illustrated in color (in the artist's studio, The Springs, Long Island, 1972)
Kyle MacMilan, "A dynamic relationship with the canvas: Aspen Art Museum exhibited de Kooning," Denver Post, December 10, 2000, p. 6H, illustrated (in the artist's studio, The Springs, Long Island, 1972)
Joanna Shaw-Eagle, " 'Process' of Artistic Creation: A Look at de Kooning's merger of paint, drawing," Washington Times, March 30, 2001, p. D5, illustrated in color (in the artist's studio, The Springs, Long Island, 1972)
Exh. Cat., New York, Museum of Modern Art, De Kooning, A Retrospective, 2011, p. 426, fig. no. 4, illustrated in color (in the artist's studio, The Springs, Long Island, 1972)

This work is in excellent condition overall. Around the edges there are scattered stable hairline cracks in the thick impasto at the extreme edges and occasionally within ½" of the extreme edge, as is often associated with stretching such thickly painted works. There are also two areas of cracking as follows: a vertical feathered pattern, located 14 ¾ - 17 ¼" from the bottom and 7 1/8 – 8" from the left edge, with a tip of slightly lifted paint at the upper end; and a circular crack located 6 ½ - 9 ¼" from the top and 6 ½ - 8 ¾" from the right with a network of linear cracks extending diagonally 2" from the top of the circle. The surface is lightly soiled from airborne dust, primarily on the ridges and tips of the thick impasto. Under ultraviolet light there are indications of consolidation and stabilization in the cracking area at the upper right. The canvas is framed in a dark blonde wood strip frame with no float.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Out of a swirl of impassioned brushstrokes emerges the abstractly rendered, but nevertheless distinct, figure of a woman. A sweeping swathe of flesh-toned pink defines her face; thin, textured, brown pigment describes her hair; and a loose, red oval delineates her open mouth. Created in 1972, Willem de Kooning’s Woman is exemplary of a critical moment of stylistic transition in the artist’s illustrious career. In 1963, after cementing his place amongst the esteemed innovators of the New York School of Abstract Expressionists, de Kooning relocated to East Hampton, Long Island, where he found that the nature and quietude of a new atmosphere infused fresh inspiration into his touchstone theme of the female figure merged with landscape. Relishing in this spark of creativity, the artist embarked upon a series of languid and graceful Women paintings that luxuriate in the environment around them. In contrast to de Kooning's distinctly aggressive and disquieting figures of the previous decade – the quintessential example being Woman I, 1950-52, at the Museum of Modern Art, New York - his series of Women painted in the 1960s and early 1970s feature flowing brushwork, warm color combinations and an overall mood of open air and bright sunshine. Much like the Impressionists, de Kooning absorbed his surrounding atmosphere and sought to imbue his canvases with these intangible elements. The artist's retreat to Long Island and the extraordinary body of work that followed can be closely compared to the archetypal paintings that Claude Monet created in his country estate and studio at Giverny. As he approached the end of his laudable career, de Kooning transmuted the vast inspiration that he garnered from his surroundings into an art injected with primal vitality.

The present work is striking in its vibrant palette and energetic composition, and draws us into its churning layers of pigment as only a truly great example of de Kooning’s remarkable corpus can. Though persistently Abstract Expressionist throughout his career, de Kooning experienced a marked stylistic shift in tone and subject in the 1970s when he broke completely with figuration in favor of unalloyed and uninhibited abstraction. Perched right at the precipice of this significant evolution, Woman beautifully captures the marriage of figuration and abstraction that is so iconic to de Kooning’s oeuvre. The blue area that seems to describe the woman’s torso is also deeply evocative of the rich blue Atlantic waters that undoubtedly predominated de Kooning’s East Hampton vista. Similarly, the lush and intermingled reds and yellows that surround the central form are reminiscent of a luminous sunset. In shimmering light, forms dissolve and reform in a manner deeply akin to de Kooning’s sense of abstraction. Nature and woman, de Kooning’s enduring muses, are intimately intertwined in the present work, resulting in a seamless blend of painterly bravura and steadfast aesthetic brilliance. Ultimately, in composition, surface and sumptuous color, Woman declares once again that de Kooning's art is at its best when transmuting the tactile pleasures of the female form and verdant landscape within the embrace of the visceral plasticity of paint. As de Kooning famously declared in 1950, "Flesh was the reason oil painting was invented."