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)
Primal Sign I, 1979–1980

Robert Motherwell

Primal Sign I, 1979–1980

Galerie Boisserée, J. & W. Boisserée GmbH

Price on Request

Harvest, with Blue Shadow aus

Robert Motherwell

Harvest, with Blue Shadow aus "Summer Light..., 1973

Galerie Boisserée, J. & W. Boisserée GmbH

Price on Request

ART CHICAGO LITHOGRAPHIC POSTER, 1981

Robert Motherwell

ART CHICAGO LITHOGRAPHIC POSTER, 1981

Alpha 137 Gallery

Price on Request

Study in Watercolour No.1 (in green and blue), 1968

Robert Motherwell

Study in Watercolour No.1 (in green and blue), 1968

Bernard Jacobson Gallery

Price on Request

Octavio Paz Suite: Mexican Elegy, 1988

Robert Motherwell

Octavio Paz Suite: Mexican Elegy, 1988

Upsilon Gallery

Price on Request

Yellow Chord, 1980–1981

Robert Motherwell

Yellow Chord, 1980–1981

Caviar20

Price on Request

Africa Tapestry, 1970

Robert Motherwell

Africa Tapestry, 1970

Caviar20

Price on Request

America-La France Variations III, 1983–1984

Robert Motherwell

America-La France Variations III, 1983–1984

Kenneth A. Friedman & Co.

Price on Request

Untitled Number 8, from the

Robert Motherwell

Untitled Number 8, from the "Basque Suite", 1971

Caviar20

Price on Request

Tobacco Roth, 1975

Robert Motherwell

Tobacco Roth, 1975

Caviar20

Price on Request

Harvest with Blue Bottom (from Summer Light..., 1973

Robert Motherwell

Harvest with Blue Bottom (from Summer Light..., 1973

Gregg Shienbaum Fine Art

Price on Request

St. Michael I (State I), 1979

Robert Motherwell

St. Michael I (State I), 1979

RoGallery

Price on Request

Hermitage, 1975

Robert Motherwell

Hermitage, 1975

Kenneth A. Friedman & Co.

Price on Request

Tricolor (Engberg/Banach 137), 1973

Robert Motherwell

Tricolor (Engberg/Banach 137), 1973

RoGallery

Price on Request

Lincoln Center Mostly Mozart, 25th Anniversary, 1991

Robert Motherwell

Lincoln Center Mostly Mozart, 25th Anniversary, 1991

RoGallery

Price on Request

The Basque Suite #3, 1970–1971

Robert Motherwell

The Basque Suite #3, 1970–1971

Sale Date: May 4, 2024

Auction Closed

Redness of Red, 1985

Robert Motherwell

Redness of Red, 1985

Sale Date: May 4, 2024

Auction Closed

Elegy Black Black, 1983

Robert Motherwell

Elegy Black Black, 1983

Sale Date: May 4, 2024

Auction Closed

Chair, 1972

Robert Motherwell

Chair, 1972

Sale Date: May 2, 2024

Auction Closed

PAUILLAC, #2 (ENGBERG/BANACH 149; BELKNAP 120), 1973

Robert Motherwell

PAUILLAC, #2 (ENGBERG/BANACH 149; BELKNAP 120), 1973

Sale Date: April 30, 2024

Auction Closed

DANCE III (RED) (ENGBERG/BANACH 233; BELKNAP , 1978

Robert Motherwell

DANCE III (RED) (ENGBERG/BANACH 233; BELKNAP , 1978

Sale Date: April 30, 2024

Auction Closed

Newport Opera, 1977–1979

Robert Motherwell

Newport Opera, 1977–1979

Sale Date: April 27, 2024

Auction Closed

American Flag, 1960

Robert Motherwell

American Flag, 1960

Sale Date: April 27, 2024

Auction Closed

Untitled (No. 12) (from The Basque Suite), 1971

Robert Motherwell

Untitled (No. 12) (from The Basque Suite), 1971

Sale Date: April 25, 2024

Auction Closed

English (US)

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