Willem de Kooning (1904-1997) was a Dutch-American painter and a central figure of the Abstract Expressionist movement. His work is celebrated for its vigorous, gestural style that masterfully blends abstraction and figuration. After arriving in the United States as a stowaway, de Kooning became a leader of the New York School by the 1950s. He is perhaps most famous for his “Women” series, which shocked the art world with its raw, aggressive depictions that challenged conventional painting. His legacy as a pioneer of “action painting” is enshrined in the collections of top museums worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, with major works like Excavation and Woman I solidifying his place as one of the 20th century’s most influential artists.