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)
Airless black

Robert Motherwell

Airless black

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

America - La France, variations V, 1984–1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France, variations V, 1984–1984

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Black rumble, 1985–1985

Robert Motherwell

Black rumble, 1985–1985

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Burning elegy, 1991–1991

Robert Motherwell

Burning elegy, 1991–1991

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Mediterranean, yellow, 1975–1975

Robert Motherwell

Mediterranean, yellow, 1975–1975

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Gestures IV, 1977–1977

Robert Motherwell

Gestures IV, 1977–1977

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Easter day 1979, 1980–1980

Robert Motherwell

Easter day 1979, 1980–1980

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

America - La France, variations III, 1984–1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France, variations III, 1984–1984

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

America - La France, variations IV, 1983–1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France, variations IV, 1983–1984

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Game of chance, 1987–1987

Robert Motherwell

Game of chance, 1987–1987

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Hollow man's cave, 1991–1991

Robert Motherwell

Hollow man's cave, 1991–1991

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Put out all flags, 1980–1980

Robert Motherwell

Put out all flags, 1980–1980

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1978–1978

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1978–1978

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

America - La France, variations IX, 1984–1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France, variations IX, 1984–1984

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Elegy study, 1989–1989

Robert Motherwell

Elegy study, 1989–1989

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Black for Mozart, 1991–1991

Robert Motherwell

Black for Mozart, 1991–1991

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Black cathedral, 1991–1991

Robert Motherwell

Black cathedral, 1991–1991

Sale Date: November 1, 2003

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1970–1970

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1970–1970

Sale Date: October 21, 2003

Auction Closed

Le coq, 1974–1975

Robert Motherwell

Le coq, 1974–1975

Sale Date: October 21, 2003

Auction Closed

Beau geste, 1989–1989

Robert Motherwell

Beau geste, 1989–1989

Sale Date: October 21, 2003

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1979–1980

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1979–1980

Sale Date: October 21, 2003

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1966–1966

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1966–1966

Sale Date: October 21, 2003

Auction Closed

America - La France variations IV, 1983–1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France variations IV, 1983–1984

Sale Date: September 24, 2003

Auction Closed

Africa 7-9, 1970–1970

Robert Motherwell

Africa 7-9, 1970–1970

Sale Date: September 24, 2003

Auction Closed

English (US)

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