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)
OCTAVIO PAZ SUITE: BLACK SUN, 1987–1988

Robert Motherwell

OCTAVIO PAZ SUITE: BLACK SUN, 1987–1988

Sale Date: October 28, 1992

Auction Closed

BLACK, YELLOW AND WHITE, 1972

Robert Motherwell

BLACK, YELLOW AND WHITE, 1972

Sale Date: October 15, 1992

Auction Closed

PORTFOLIO M. PLEYNET

Robert Motherwell

PORTFOLIO M. PLEYNET

Sale Date: October 15, 1992

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1972

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1972

Sale Date: October 10, 1992

Auction Closed

SOCIETE POPULAIRE DES BEAUX-ARTS (PLAKAT), 1987

Robert Motherwell

SOCIETE POPULAIRE DES BEAUX-ARTS (PLAKAT), 1987

Sale Date: October 10, 1992

Auction Closed

BLACK 1-3, 1969

Robert Motherwell

BLACK 1-3, 1969

Sale Date: October 10, 1992

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1972

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1972

Sale Date: October 6, 1992

Auction Closed

Untitled

Robert Motherwell

Untitled

Sale Date: October 6, 1992

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1965

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, 1965

Sale Date: October 6, 1992

Auction Closed

DANCE II (B. 200) (#13/30), 1978

Robert Motherwell

DANCE II (B. 200) (#13/30), 1978

Sale Date: September 19, 1992

Auction Closed

SUMMER LIGHT SERIES: HARVEST, WITH BLUE..., 1973

Robert Motherwell

SUMMER LIGHT SERIES: HARVEST, WITH BLUE..., 1973

Sale Date: September 19, 1992

Auction Closed

THE POET'S EYE (B. 429) (#18/35), 1989–1990

Robert Motherwell

THE POET'S EYE (B. 429) (#18/35), 1989–1990

Sale Date: September 19, 1992

Auction Closed

UNTITLED (BELKNAP 19) (#23/25), 1965–1966

Robert Motherwell

UNTITLED (BELKNAP 19) (#23/25), 1965–1966

Sale Date: September 19, 1992

Auction Closed

ABSTRACT

Robert Motherwell

ABSTRACT

Sale Date: July 15, 1992

Auction Closed

Untitled, pl.2, 1970–1971

Robert Motherwell

Untitled, pl.2, 1970–1971

Sale Date: July 3, 1992

Auction Closed

CHAIR (B.78), 1971–1972

Robert Motherwell

CHAIR (B.78), 1971–1972

Sale Date: July 1, 1992

Auction Closed

BEAU GESTE POUR LUCRECE

Robert Motherwell

BEAU GESTE POUR LUCRECE

Sale Date: July 1, 1992

Auction Closed

ORANGE AND PINK., 1972

Robert Motherwell

ORANGE AND PINK., 1972

Sale Date: June 20, 1992

Auction Closed

COMPOSITION FROM

Robert Motherwell

COMPOSITION FROM "MADRID SUITE"

Sale Date: June 20, 1992

Auction Closed

Africa suite: #6, 1970

Robert Motherwell

Africa suite: #6, 1970

Sale Date: June 11, 1992

Auction Closed

THE BASQUE SUITE: BLACK, GREEN, AND RED, 1970–1971

Robert Motherwell

THE BASQUE SUITE: BLACK, GREEN, AND RED, 1970–1971

Sale Date: June 11, 1992

Auction Closed

A LA PINTURA: WHITE 3-6, 1971

Robert Motherwell

A LA PINTURA: WHITE 3-6, 1971

Sale Date: June 11, 1992

Auction Closed

TEN WORKS BY TEN PAINTERS: UNTITLED, 1964

Robert Motherwell

TEN WORKS BY TEN PAINTERS: UNTITLED, 1964

Sale Date: June 11, 1992

Auction Closed

GAULOISES BLEUES (RAW UMBER EDGE), 1971

Robert Motherwell

GAULOISES BLEUES (RAW UMBER EDGE), 1971

Sale Date: June 11, 1992

Auction Closed

English (US)

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