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)
Los Angeles sun, 1979–1980

Robert Motherwell

Los Angeles sun, 1979–1980

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

El general (+ La guerra II, lrgr; 2 works), 1980

Robert Motherwell

El general (+ La guerra II, lrgr; 2 works), 1980

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Easter day, 1980

Robert Motherwell

Easter day, 1980

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Dance I, 1978

Robert Motherwell

Dance I, 1978

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1978

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1978

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Gesture IV, 1976–1977

Robert Motherwell

Gesture IV, 1976–1977

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Gesture I, 1976–1977

Robert Motherwell

Gesture I, 1976–1977

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Tobacco Roth-Händle, 1974–1975

Robert Motherwell

Tobacco Roth-Händle, 1974–1975

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Harvest, in Scotland (from Summer Light), 1973

Robert Motherwell

Harvest, in Scotland (from Summer Light), 1973

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Tallith for Meyer Schapiro, 1973

Robert Motherwell

Tallith for Meyer Schapiro, 1973

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Blue 4 (from A la Pintura), 1969

Robert Motherwell

Blue 4 (from A la Pintura), 1969

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Africa suite, pl.5, 1970

Robert Motherwell

Africa suite, pl.5, 1970

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Africa suite, pl.4, 1970

Robert Motherwell

Africa suite, pl.4, 1970

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Untitled (from A la Pintura), 1969

Robert Motherwell

Untitled (from A la Pintura), 1969

Sale Date: February 8, 2005

Auction Closed

Untitled (Study for Hollow Men), 1977

Robert Motherwell

Untitled (Study for Hollow Men), 1977

Sale Date: September 21, 2004

Auction Closed

No.5 orange, red and green (from The Basque suite)

Robert Motherwell

No.5 orange, red and green (from The Basque suite)

Sale Date: September 21, 2004

Auction Closed

Orange and pink (from London Series II), 1970–1971

Robert Motherwell

Orange and pink (from London Series II), 1970–1971

Sale Date: January 13, 2005

Auction Closed

Chair, 1971–1972

Robert Motherwell

Chair, 1971–1972

Sale Date: December 4, 2004

Auction Closed

Young Bird, 1952

Robert Motherwell

Young Bird, 1952

Sale Date: January 11, 2005

Auction Closed

Black, green, and red (from The Basque..., 1970–1971

Robert Motherwell

Black, green, and red (from The Basque..., 1970–1971

Sale Date: December 10, 2004

Auction Closed

Mediterranean state II yellow, 1975

Robert Motherwell

Mediterranean state II yellow, 1975

Sale Date: December 3, 2004

Auction Closed

Black flag, 1982–1983

Robert Motherwell

Black flag, 1982–1983

Sale Date: December 3, 2004

Auction Closed

Ohne Titel

Robert Motherwell

Ohne Titel

Sale Date: December 2, 2004

Auction Closed

Dance III, 1978

Robert Motherwell

Dance III, 1978

Sale Date: November 30, 2004

Auction Closed

English (US)

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