Willem de Kooning (1904–1997) was born in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and later moved to the United States. He was one of the most important Abstract Expressionist artists of the 20th century and a central figure in the New York School. Both Tate and Britannica classify him as a Dutch-American Abstract Expressionist painter; Britannica also identifies him as an important exponent of Action Painting.

A well-known aspect of his work is that he does not completely separate the “abstract” from the “figurative.” He painted figures early in his career and later moved into abstraction, but traces of bodies, landscapes, women, cities, and light often remain in his images. In other words, rather than simply painting geometric shapes, he breaks the real world apart and reassembles it in an intense, emotional way.

De Kooning’s brushwork often has a palpable physicality, and his paintings seem to be constantly changing. This is part of their appeal: they do not hang quietly on the wall but seem still to be breathing, struggling, and moving.