Woman III
Willem de Kooning (1952–53 (often dated 1953))
Woman III stages a face‑off between <strong>figuration and abstraction</strong>: a looming, front‑facing body whose breasts and hips jut forward even as limbs smear into eddies of paint. The mask‑like eyes and toothy grin toggle between <strong>seduction and menace</strong>, while the scraped, turbulent surface asserts painting as a <strong>combat zone</strong> rather than calm depiction <sup>[1]</sup>.
