Avant-garde American artist Cy Twombly, 83, dies in Rome

American artist Cy Twombly has died at the age of 83 in a hospital in Rome, Italy. Twombly battled with cancer for years and was hospitalized a few days ago.

Born Edwin Parker Twombly Jr. on April 25^th 1928, in Lexington Virginia, his father affectionately called him 'Cy', after Boston Red Sox pitcher, Cy Young.

Twombly attended the Darlington School in Georgia, the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and the Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. He was known for his painting skills, use of letters and abstract on large scales, which featured graffiti and scribbling.

It's more like I'm having an experience than making a picture, Twombly stated of his artwork.

Some of his work includes the 1962 Leda and the Swan, the design of Greek mythology, painted in Southern Italy, and the Fifty Days at Iliam (1978) with an inspiration from Homer's Iliad. Twombly's paintings often went as high as $5.5 million at auctions, including his 1971 untitled blackboard painting. In 2002 another untitled painting sold for $8.1 million at Sotheby's, setting a record.

In 2010, Twombly unveiled his painting, Ceiling, of the ceiling in the Musée du Louvre.

Also in 2010, Twombly was appointed by the French government as a Chevalier at the Légion d'Honneur.
Cy Twombly lived in Italy between Rome and Naples for the past fifty years.

Last month an exhibit was opened to show the artist's photographs at the Lambert Collection in Avignon, France.