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)
Untitled, 1950–1950

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1950–1950

Sale Date: May 8, 2000

Auction Closed

Jacob's Ladder and Burning Bush, 1951–1951

Robert Motherwell

Jacob's Ladder and Burning Bush, 1951–1951

Sale Date: May 8, 2000

Auction Closed

The black Douglas stone, 1970–1971

Robert Motherwell

The black Douglas stone, 1970–1971

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

America - La France, variations I, 1983–1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France, variations I, 1983–1984

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

America - La France, variations VI, 1984–1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France, variations VI, 1984–1984

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Game of chance, 1987–1987

Robert Motherwell

Game of chance, 1987–1987

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

In white with green stripe, 1987–1987

Robert Motherwell

In white with green stripe, 1987–1987

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Three figures, 1989–1989

Robert Motherwell

Three figures, 1989–1989

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Djarum, 1975–1975

Robert Motherwell

Djarum, 1975–1975

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Mediterranean, 1975–1975

Robert Motherwell

Mediterranean, 1975–1975

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

St. Michael I, 1979–1979

Robert Motherwell

St. Michael I, 1979–1979

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

El negro, 1980–1983

Robert Motherwell

El negro, 1980–1983

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Elegy black black, 1983–1983

Robert Motherwell

Elegy black black, 1983–1983

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

America - La France, variations III, 1984–1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France, variations III, 1984–1984

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

America - La France, variations II, 1984–1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France, variations II, 1984–1984

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

America - La France, variations IV, 1984–1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France, variations IV, 1984–1984

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Mask (For Igmar Bergman), 1989–1989

Robert Motherwell

Mask (For Igmar Bergman), 1989–1989

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Redness of red, 1985–1985

Robert Motherwell

Redness of red, 1985–1985

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Blue elegy, 1987–1987

Robert Motherwell

Blue elegy, 1987–1987

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Burning elegy, 1991–1991

Robert Motherwell

Burning elegy, 1991–1991

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Bastos, 1974–1975

Robert Motherwell

Bastos, 1974–1975

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Samurai II, 1979–1980

Robert Motherwell

Samurai II, 1979–1980

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Rite of passage I, 1979–1980

Robert Motherwell

Rite of passage I, 1979–1980

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

Brushstroke, 1979–1980

Robert Motherwell

Brushstroke, 1979–1980

Sale Date: May 6, 2000

Auction Closed

English (US)

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