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, in red and black, 1972–1973

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, in red and black, 1972–1973

Sale Date: May 9, 1999

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1973–1973

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1973–1973

Sale Date: May 9, 1999

Auction Closed

Mediterranean

Robert Motherwell

Mediterranean

Sale Date: May 9, 1999

Auction Closed

Black rumble, 1983–1984

Robert Motherwell

Black rumble, 1983–1984

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

Gypsy curse, 1983–1983

Robert Motherwell

Gypsy curse, 1983–1983

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

French Revolution bicentennial suite IV, 1987–1988

Robert Motherwell

French Revolution bicentennial suite IV, 1987–1988

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

Untitled #16, 1976–1976

Robert Motherwell

Untitled #16, 1976–1976

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

Red sea II, 1979–1979

Robert Motherwell

Red sea II, 1979–1979

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

Lament for Lorca, 1991–1991

Robert Motherwell

Lament for Lorca, 1991–1991

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

French Revolution bicentennial suite III, 1987–1988

Robert Motherwell

French Revolution bicentennial suite III, 1987–1988

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

A la pintura

Robert Motherwell

A la pintura

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

Hermitage, 1975–1975

Robert Motherwell

Hermitage, 1975–1975

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

Red sea III, 1982–1983

Robert Motherwell

Red sea III, 1982–1983

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

Hollow men suite, 1985–1986

Robert Motherwell

Hollow men suite, 1985–1986

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

French Revolution bicentennial suite II, 1987–1988

Robert Motherwell

French Revolution bicentennial suite II, 1987–1988

Sale Date: May 4, 1999

Auction Closed

Mediterranean light, 1991–1991

Robert Motherwell

Mediterranean light, 1991–1991

Sale Date: May 1, 1999

Auction Closed

Elegy study, 1978–1979

Robert Motherwell

Elegy study, 1978–1979

Sale Date: May 1, 1999

Auction Closed

Mask (For Ingmar Bergman), 1989–1989

Robert Motherwell

Mask (For Ingmar Bergman), 1989–1989

Sale Date: May 1, 1999

Auction Closed

On the wing, 1983–1984

Robert Motherwell

On the wing, 1983–1984

Sale Date: April 28, 1999

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1975–1975

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1975–1975

Sale Date: April 22, 1999

Auction Closed

Summer light series harvest with blue shadow

Robert Motherwell

Summer light series harvest with blue shadow

Sale Date: March 25, 1999

Auction Closed

Beau Geste pour Lucrèce, 1989–1989

Robert Motherwell

Beau Geste pour Lucrèce, 1989–1989

Sale Date: March 24, 1999

Auction Closed

Chair, 1972–1972

Robert Motherwell

Chair, 1972–1972

Sale Date: March 20, 1999

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1982–1982

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1982–1982

Sale Date: March 12, 1999

Auction Closed

English (US)

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