Robert Motherwell

(American, 1915–1991)

Robert Motherwell was an American artist and seminal Abstract Expressionist painter. Influenced by the automatic writing and drawing prescribed by the Surrealists, Motherwell’s practice was characterized by an intuitive approach to painting. He is perhaps best known for his iconic Elegy to the Spanish Republic series, which consists of 150 variants of black forms on white backgrounds. “Painting is a medium in which the mind can actualize itself; it is a medium of thought,” he once reflected. “Thus painting, like music, tends to become its own content.” Born on January 24, 1915 in Aberdeen, WA, Motherwell moved to New York to study at Columbia University with the art historian Meyer Schapiro. It was Schapiro's encouragement that initially led the artist to start making paintings. During the early 1940s, he entered a milieu of young artists that included William Baziotes, Jackson Pollock, and Willem de Kooning. Motherwell later taught Cy Twombly and Robert Rauschenberg at the famed Black Mountain College. After returning to New York, he met the painter Helen Frankenthaler in 1957, and they were married three years later. During their 13 year marriage, the two artists’ mutual interest in the poetry of abstraction fueled one another’s work. Motherwell died on July 16, 1991 in Cape Cod, MA. Today, his works are held in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., The Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Tate Modern in London, among others.

Robert Motherwell News

Gallery Network

7 Questions for Dealer Bernard Jacobson on Why He’s Devoting Three Back-to-Back Exhibitions to Robert Motherwell’s Work

by Artnet Gallery Network
7 Questions for Dealer Bernard Jacobson on Why He’s Devoting Three Back-to-Back Exhibitions to Robert Motherwell’s Work
Law & Politics

The Brooklyn Gallerist Who Artist Deborah Roberts Is Suing for Copyright Infringement Has Fired Back, Calling It a Case of 'Punching Down'

by Eileen Kinsella
The Brooklyn Gallerist Who Artist Deborah Roberts Is Suing for Copyright Infringement Has Fired Back, Calling It a Case of 'Punching Down'
Law & Politics

The FBI Has Recovered a Crimson Robert Motherwell Painting Stolen 40 Years Ago by a Moving Man

by Eileen Kinsella
The FBI Has Recovered a Crimson Robert Motherwell Painting Stolen 40 Years Ago by a Moving Man

Robert Motherwell Artworks

Artworks for Sale &
Auction Results

Robert Motherwell (7,271 results)
Chicago art print, 1981

Robert Motherwell

Chicago art print, 1981

Sale Date: October 23, 2010

Auction Closed

Bird (study), 1954

Robert Motherwell

Bird (study), 1954

Sale Date: November 9, 2010

Auction Closed

Spontaneity no.4, 1966

Robert Motherwell

Spontaneity no.4, 1966

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

Elegy to the Spanish Republic no.110c, 1968

Robert Motherwell

Elegy to the Spanish Republic no.110c, 1968

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

America cup II

Robert Motherwell

America cup II

Sale Date: October 20, 2010

Auction Closed

The black wall, 1981

Robert Motherwell

The black wall, 1981

Sale Date: October 26, 2010

Auction Closed

Bastos, 1974–1975

Robert Motherwell

Bastos, 1974–1975

Sale Date: October 26, 2010

Auction Closed

Palo Alto, 1973–1976

Robert Motherwell

Palo Alto, 1973–1976

Sale Date: October 26, 2010

Auction Closed

Mediterranean, 1975

Robert Motherwell

Mediterranean, 1975

Sale Date: October 21, 2010

Auction Closed

African 2 (from African suite), 1970

Robert Motherwell

African 2 (from African suite), 1970

Sale Date: October 21, 2010

Auction Closed

Octavio Paz suite (album of 27 works w/..., 1988

Robert Motherwell

Octavio Paz suite (album of 27 works w/..., 1988

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

Blue elegy, 1987

Robert Motherwell

Blue elegy, 1987

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

Game of chance, 1987

Robert Motherwell

Game of chance, 1987

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

America-La France variations IX, 1984

Robert Motherwell

America-La France variations IX, 1984

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

America-La France variations VIII, 1984

Robert Motherwell

America-La France variations VIII, 1984

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

America-La France variations VII, 1984

Robert Motherwell

America-La France variations VII, 1984

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

America-La France variations VI, 1984

Robert Motherwell

America-La France variations VI, 1984

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

America-La France variations V, 1984

Robert Motherwell

America-La France variations V, 1984

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

America-La France variations IV, 1984

Robert Motherwell

America-La France variations IV, 1984

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

America-La France variations III, 1984

Robert Motherwell

America-La France variations III, 1984

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

America-La France variations II, 1984

Robert Motherwell

America-La France variations II, 1984

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

America-La France variations I, 1984

Robert Motherwell

America-La France variations I, 1984

Sale Date: October 27, 2010

Auction Closed

Nocturne no.6, 1987–1988

Robert Motherwell

Nocturne no.6, 1987–1988

Sale Date: September 29, 2010

Auction Closed

Mexico City personages no.2 (from..., 1987–1988

Robert Motherwell

Mexico City personages no.2 (from..., 1987–1988

Sale Date: September 29, 2010

Auction Closed

English (US)

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