The Women series of paintings by Willem de Kooning caused a stir in the art world. They were:

A. provocative because of their high realism.
B. loved by the public but reviled by critics.
C. the result of his turning away from abstract representation to a nonrepresentational style.
D. seen as powerless, cool, and intellectual.
E. seen as shocking and brutal.

E
Although the artist began each painting from a photograph of a beautiful woman, it mutated into a grimacing monster, which de Kooning reports wasn't his goal at all.