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)
Automatism A, 1966

Robert Motherwell

Automatism A, 1966

Sale Date: September 21, 2023

Auction Closed

Africa 9, from Africa Suite (E. & B. 77), 1970

Robert Motherwell

Africa 9, from Africa Suite (E. & B. 77), 1970

Sale Date: September 13, 2023

Auction Closed

On the Wing (T. 454, E. & B. 340), 1984

Robert Motherwell

On the Wing (T. 454, E. & B. 340), 1984

Sale Date: September 13, 2023

Auction Closed

Untitled, from The Basque Suite (E. & B. 81), 1971

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, from The Basque Suite (E. & B. 81), 1971

Sale Date: September 13, 2023

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1964–1972

Antoni Tapiès and Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1964–1972

Sale Date: September 21, 2023

Auction Closed

I.H. Series No. 22 (The Basque Suite), 1970

Robert Motherwell

I.H. Series No. 22 (The Basque Suite), 1970

Sale Date: September 28, 2023

Auction Closed

Mask (for Ingmar Bergman), 1989

Robert Motherwell

Mask (for Ingmar Bergman), 1989

Sale Date: September 7, 2023

Auction Closed

Lament for Lorca, 1982

Robert Motherwell

Lament for Lorca, 1982

Sale Date: September 7, 2023

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1966

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1966

Sale Date: September 7, 2023

Auction Closed

Red Open w/ White Stripe, 1978–1979

Robert Motherwell

Red Open w/ White Stripe, 1978–1979

Sale Date: September 13, 2023

Auction Closed

Gauloises Bleues, 1968

Robert Motherwell

Gauloises Bleues, 1968

Sale Date: August 19, 2023

Auction Closed

Artist's Proof from Madrid Suite, 1965

Robert Motherwell

Artist's Proof from Madrid Suite, 1965

Sale Date: August 18, 2023

Auction Closed

Newport Opera, 1979

Robert Motherwell

Newport Opera, 1979

Sale Date: August 14, 2023

Auction Closed

Spoleto, 1968

Robert Motherwell

Spoleto, 1968

Sale Date: August 14, 2023

Auction Closed

Oy/Yo, 1978

Robert Motherwell

Oy/Yo, 1978

Sale Date: August 14, 2023

Auction Closed

Through Black Emerged Purified, 1983

Robert Motherwell

Through Black Emerged Purified, 1983

Sale Date: August 16, 2023

Auction Closed

Paris Suite III (Autumn), 1980

Robert Motherwell

Paris Suite III (Autumn), 1980

Sale Date: August 8, 2023

Auction Closed

Chair, 1972

Robert Motherwell

Chair, 1972

Sale Date: August 8, 2023

Auction Closed

SPOLETO FESTIVAL. 1968., 1968

Robert Motherwell

SPOLETO FESTIVAL. 1968., 1968

Sale Date: August 3, 2023

Auction Closed

Birthday Party Menu Prepared For Arthur And..., 1975

Robert Motherwell

Birthday Party Menu Prepared For Arthur And..., 1975

Sale Date: July 28, 2023

Auction Closed

Through Black Emerge Purified, 1983

Robert Motherwell

Through Black Emerge Purified, 1983

Sale Date: July 27, 2023

Auction Closed

America - La France Variation IX (from the..., 1984

Robert Motherwell

America - La France Variation IX (from the..., 1984

Sale Date: July 27, 2023

Auction Closed

Africa 10 (from the Africa suite), 1970

Robert Motherwell

Africa 10 (from the Africa suite), 1970

Sale Date: July 27, 2023

Auction Closed

BLACK ON BLACK

Robert Motherwell

BLACK ON BLACK

Sale Date: August 9, 2023

Auction Closed

English (US)

©2024 Artnet Worldwide Corporation. All rights reserved.