
The Woman in Me
Willem De Kooning, Woman I-VI
Marlene Clark(Author)
Academica Press
Published on 30. May 2020
Book
Hardback
310 pages
978-1-68053-100-8 (ISBN)
Description
Willem de Kooning's six numbered Woman paintings have incited a maelstrom of critical controversy. At their debut in 1953, the critics were incensed by the ugliness of the images themselves and by the inclusion of vestiges of the figure in abstraction. Consequently, they questioned de Kooning's attitude toward women and commitment to the Abstract Expressionist project.
Countering such objections to de Kooning's psychological state and artistic goals, Marlene Clark's The Woman in Me: Willem de Kooning, Woman I-VI argues that these canvases could be read as self-portraits, negating claims of misogyny and explaining the presence of figuration amidst abstraction. On a number of occasions, de Kooning admitted that the images on these canvases were "me-but with big shoulders."
The Woman in Me focuses on de Kooning's propensity to "play" with the sexed body in his paintings. Clark argues that earlier criticism may have missed a more philosophical dimension of de Kooning's paintings, one that explores the malleability of representations of biological sex and the male/female binary.
Countering such objections to de Kooning's psychological state and artistic goals, Marlene Clark's The Woman in Me: Willem de Kooning, Woman I-VI argues that these canvases could be read as self-portraits, negating claims of misogyny and explaining the presence of figuration amidst abstraction. On a number of occasions, de Kooning admitted that the images on these canvases were "me-but with big shoulders."
The Woman in Me focuses on de Kooning's propensity to "play" with the sexed body in his paintings. Clark argues that earlier criticism may have missed a more philosophical dimension of de Kooning's paintings, one that explores the malleability of representations of biological sex and the male/female binary.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Bethesda
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
594 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-68053-100-8 (9781680531008)
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Schweitzer Classification