On the humid fall September evening, I made my way through the throngs of people, dressed to impress, with cocktails in hand and eyes all aglow. A festive spirit infiltrated the air with a serious undertone nodding to the expansive and expensive nature of this exhibition. Riding the escalator up to the 6th floor, my heart thumped with a new-school day excitement. I found myself among the flourish of colors and urban abstractions and female interpretations, mixed with sculpture and black-and-whites, squeezed into museum walls bursting with conversation, eyes and hands furiously pointing, staring, in awe of a master, my mind buzzing with the excitement of it all; I had fallen down the rabbit hole.
Welcome to The Museum of Modern Art's "de Kooning: A Retrospective." The rooms flowed through his time line of themes starting with '40s figurations, black and white compositions, then to the female idol with my personal favorite, "Woman I" and into landscapes, finally swooping into more abstractions and a focus on paint strokes. Sculptures also dotted a few rooms, speaking to his expansive pallet of materials. I was in utter awe. I attempted to read the curator's summaries at the start of each room but with the mass of members moving in wav
es, it was hard to concentrate, so I gave in to solely enjoying the flow of colors and lines.Paying tribute to this modern master is no small feat. He wrestles with the figure over the years, expanding the boundaries of abstraction, and teasing those trying to define him. His shuddering lines and acid colors stir something in the viewer that only a mastermind could do.
It is surely a show that requires time and studious observation, but the opening shrouded the show in luxurious admiration. Luckily for me, I will be blessed with a curatorial walkthrough in early October. And I plan to eat up every moment I have alone in front of his mesmerizing works.
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