The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 19, 2025

Figure

1949

Willem de Kooning

(American, born The Netherlands, 1904–1997)
America
oil on cardboard
Framed: 55 x 44.5 x 8 cm (21 5/8 x 17 1/2 x 3 1/8 in.); Unframed: 46.7 x 36.8 cm (18 3/8 x 14 1/2 in.)
Contemporary Collection of The Cleveland Museum of Art 1964.1
© The Willem de Kooning Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

De Kooning once famously stated, "Flesh was the reason oil painting was invented."

Description

By using rough, hasty brushstrokes, de Kooning gives us a glimpse into his process. He painted many women during the 1940s and 1950s, each time emphasizing the action of painting in his depictions of the female form.
  • Cleveland Museum of Art, “Recent Acquisitions Press Release,” February 19, 1964, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives. archive.org
    Henning, Edward B. “The Language of Art.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 51, no. 9 (November 1964): 211–231. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 215-217, fig. 2 www.jstor.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 200 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 200 archive.org
    Cleveland Museum of Art. Art of the Twentieth Century in the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: Dept. of Art History & Education, CMA, 1969. Mentioned: p. 3 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 250 archive.org
    Landau, Ellen G. “‘Space and Pictorial Life’ Hans Hofmann’s ‘Smaragd Red and Germinating Yellow.’” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 72, no. 5 (September 1985): 310–322. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 311, fig. 5 www.jstor.org
    Hinson, Tom E. “Alex Katz’s Impala.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 73, no. 8 (October 1986): 314–326. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 317, fig. 5 www.jstor.org
  • Willem de Kooning Retrospective. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY (organizer) (September 18, 2011-January 9, 2012).
    Museum of Modern Art, NYC (9/18/2011 - 1/9/2012): "Willem de Kooning Retrospective"
    Willem de Kooning: Tracing the Figure. The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA (February 10-April 28, 2002); San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA (June 27-September 8, 2002); National Gallery of Art, Landover, MD (September 29, 2002-January 5, 2003).
    Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles 2/10/02-4/24/02; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art 6/15/02-9/8/02; National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. 9/29/02-1/5/03. "Willem de Kooning: Tracing the Figure," pl. 27.
    Also to: New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, October 6, 1994 - January 8, 1995; London: The Tate Gallery, February 15 - May 7, 1995
    Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art, May 8 - September 5, 1994: "Willem de Kooning: Paintings," catalogue no. 24, reproduced color p. 123.
    Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 7-September 8, 1991).
    CMA, June 7 - September 8, 1991: "Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum," no catalogue
    CMA, November 1, 1983 - January 8, 1984: "The Figure: deKooning to Warhol," no catalogue
    Willem de Kooning: Pittsburgh International Series. Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA (organizer) (October 26, 1979-January 6, 1980).
    Pittsburgh, PA, Carnegie Museum of Art, October 26, 1979 - January 6, 1980: "Willem de Kooning: Pittsburgh International Series," catalogue no. 13, reproduced p. 44.
    Juxtapositions. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (September 11-October 10, 1965).
    Year in Review (1964). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 8, 1964-January 31, 1965).
    CMA, December, 1964: "Year in Review 1964," CMA Bulletin LI (December, 1964), p. 266, no. 163.
  • {{cite web|title=Figure|url=false|author=Willem de Kooning|year=1949|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1964.1