Willem De Kooning

(Rotterdam 1904–1997 New York)
Untitled, circa 1967–69, signed and dedicated pencil and charcoal on translucent parchment paper, 47 x 52 cm, framed

Provenance:
N. Richard Miller, New York
Stephen Mazoh & Co., Inc, New York
Private Collection, New York
Marisa del Re Gallery, New York
Sale, Christie’s London, 9 December 1999, lot 618
European Private Collection

Exhibited:
New York, Drawings, Lorence-Monk Gallery, 6 April - 11 May 1991
New York, A Passion for Art, Watercolors and Works on Paper, Tony Shafrazi Gallery, 7 December 1991 – 25 January 1992

Literature:
S. Yard, Willem de Kooning, New York, 1997, cat. p. 92, no. 76 with ill.;
S. Yard, Willem de Kooning: Works, Writings and Interviews, Barcelona 2007, p. 80, with ill.

For de Kooning, drawings were not necessarily studies for paintings, as with many artists, but were created alongside and during the execution of other works. Drawing was a practice in its own right. While continuing to experiment with various media, de Kooning primarily drew with charcoal, pencil, and ink on a variety of papers. The drawings from this period reflect de Kooning’s interest in the fragmentation, contortion, and suspension of the body.