Willem de Kooning is known for his emotive, gestural canvases that transcend traditional definitions of figuration and abstraction. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, he turned his attention away from painting, focusing on sculpture, prints, and drawings. In 1975, at the age of 71, de Kooning began one of the most productive periods of painting in his career, rapidly completing 20 new, large canvases within 6 months.
The painting “Untitled XI” belongs to this series, which was, with a few exceptions, untitled and numbered chronologically. Moving away from tightly organized compositions, de Kooning used loose, soft brushstrokes, sensual colors to free form. Here, the figurative references that are dominant in his early work almost disappear into a much more lyrical and joyful abstract landscape.
Source: https://www.willem-de-kooning.org/untitled-xi.jsp
