Elaine de Kooning (1918–1989) was a painter, art critic and educator who played a significant role in the development of Abstract Expressionism. Born in Brooklyn, New York, she studied at Hunter College, the Leonardo da Vinci Art School and the American Artists School. An influential participant in New York's postwar avant-garde, she developed a distinctive style combining gestural abstraction with a commitment to the human figure. Her energetic portraits of artists, writers and cultural figures, including Frank O'Hara, Allen Ginsberg and Merce Cunningham, captured her subjects through expressive brushwork and vibrant color. In 1962, she was commissioned to paint President John F. Kennedy, producing a celebrated series of portraits and studies. De Kooning was a visiting artist the University California, Davis, in 1963 and developed friendships with Wayne and Betty Jean Thiebaud. In 1976, Betty Jean filmed Elaine de Kooning Paints a Portrait, documenting the artist's creative process. The film was subsequently featured in the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery's 2015 exhibition Elaine de Kooning: Portraits. Her work is held in major museum collections, including the Museum of Modern Art and Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.