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 (B.81), 1972

Robert Motherwell

UNTITLED (B.81), 1972

Sale Date: February 25, 1992

Auction Closed

BIRD II, 1973

Robert Motherwell

BIRD II, 1973

Sale Date: February 25, 1992

Auction Closed

SOOT-BLACK STONE #3, 1973, (#66), 1973

Robert Motherwell

SOOT-BLACK STONE #3, 1973, (#66), 1973

Sale Date: February 21, 1992

Auction Closed

CULTURAL INSTITUIONS, 1982

Robert Motherwell

CULTURAL INSTITUIONS, 1982

Sale Date: February 11, 1992

Auction Closed

Untitled

Robert Motherwell

Untitled

Sale Date: December 16, 1991

Auction Closed

UNTITLED FROM

Robert Motherwell

UNTITLED FROM "PEACE PORTFOLIO I", 1970

Sale Date: December 15, 1991

Auction Closed

IN WHITE WITH GREEN STRIPE, 1987

Robert Motherwell

IN WHITE WITH GREEN STRIPE, 1987

Sale Date: December 13, 1991

Auction Closed

The Persian II, 1984

Robert Motherwell

The Persian II, 1984

Sale Date: December 13, 1991

Auction Closed

BLACK, GREEN AND RED, 1970–1971

Robert Motherwell

BLACK, GREEN AND RED, 1970–1971

Sale Date: December 5, 1991

Auction Closed

CHAIR

Robert Motherwell

CHAIR

Sale Date: December 4, 1991

Auction Closed

POESIE, ET IMAGE (2), 1990

Robert Motherwell

POESIE, ET IMAGE (2), 1990

Sale Date: December 4, 1991

Auction Closed

ELEGY OF NIGHT, 1975

Robert Motherwell

ELEGY OF NIGHT, 1975

Sale Date: November 30, 1991

Auction Closed

SOOT-BLACK STONE 4, 1973

Robert Motherwell

SOOT-BLACK STONE 4, 1973

Sale Date: November 30, 1991

Auction Closed

Composition

Robert Motherwell

Composition

Sale Date: November 27, 1991

Auction Closed

CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS, 1938

Robert Motherwell

CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS, 1938

Sale Date: November 27, 1991

Auction Closed

FOLGE VON 4 BLL.: FRENCH REVOLUTION , 1988

Robert Motherwell

FOLGE VON 4 BLL.: FRENCH REVOLUTION , 1988

Sale Date: November 27, 1991

Auction Closed

LONDON SERIES I (ORANGE), 1970–1971

Robert Motherwell

LONDON SERIES I (ORANGE), 1970–1971

Sale Date: November 27, 1991

Auction Closed

Sans titre

Robert Motherwell

Sans titre

Sale Date: November 22, 1991

Auction Closed

Sans titre

Robert Motherwell

Sans titre

Sale Date: November 22, 1991

Auction Closed

TRICOLOR, 1973

Robert Motherwell

TRICOLOR, 1973

Sale Date: November 21, 1991

Auction Closed

SKIN SOUND OF THE WORLD, 1989

Robert Motherwell

SKIN SOUND OF THE WORLD, 1989

Sale Date: November 19, 1991

Auction Closed

Ohne Titel, 1986

Robert Motherwell

Ohne Titel, 1986

Sale Date: November 19, 1991

Auction Closed

Ohne Titel

Robert Motherwell

Ohne Titel

Sale Date: November 19, 1991

Auction Closed

BEAU GESTE POUR LUCRECE I, II, V, VI , 1989

Robert Motherwell

BEAU GESTE POUR LUCRECE I, II, V, VI , 1989

Sale Date: November 19, 1991

Auction Closed

English (US)

©2024 Artnet Worldwide Corporation. All rights reserved.