The Unruly Brushstrokes of Innovation The latest retrospective on Willem de Kooning at the Art Institute of Chicago is less a celebration of the artist's technique than a critique of the notion that art can be tamed by conventional rules.
By examining the evolution of De Kooning's drawing style, this exhibition reveals the tension between creative impulse and artistic tradition – a tension that has long defined the avant garde movement.
De Kooning's career was marked by an insatiable desire for innovation, a constant quest to push beyond the boundaries of what was deemed acceptable in art.