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)
SPANISH ELEGY I

Robert Motherwell

SPANISH ELEGY I

Sale Date: November 21, 1989

Auction Closed

Untitled

Robert Motherwell

Untitled

Sale Date: November 21, 1989

Auction Closed

OY/YO

Robert Motherwell

OY/YO

Sale Date: November 21, 1989

Auction Closed

GAULOISES BLEUES (BELKNAP 33)

Robert Motherwell

GAULOISES BLEUES (BELKNAP 33)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

A LA PINTURA (B. 82-102)

Robert Motherwell

A LA PINTURA (B. 82-102)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

DJRUM (B. 145; TYLER 390: RM9)

Robert Motherwell

DJRUM (B. 145; TYLER 390: RM9)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

ST. MICHEL I (STATE II) (B. 204; T. 396:RM15)

Robert Motherwell

ST. MICHEL I (STATE II) (B. 204; T. 396:RM15)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

GAME OF CHANCE

Robert Motherwell

GAME OF CHANCE

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

AT THE EDGE (B. 315)

Robert Motherwell

AT THE EDGE (B. 315)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

UNTITLED (B. 150)

Robert Motherwell

UNTITLED (B. 150)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

LAMENT FOR LORCA (B. 254; T. 413:RM32)

Robert Motherwell

LAMENT FOR LORCA (B. 254; T. 413:RM32)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

RED SEA II (B. 211)

Robert Motherwell

RED SEA II (B. 211)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

ROTH-HANDLE II (B. 153)

Robert Motherwell

ROTH-HANDLE II (B. 153)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

FLAGS (RM 88)

Robert Motherwell

FLAGS (RM 88)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

AMERICA--LA FRANCE VARIATIONS IV (B. 300; T....

Robert Motherwell

AMERICA--LA FRANCE VARIATIONS IV (B. 300; T....

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

HERMITAGE (B. 149: RM13)

Robert Motherwell

HERMITAGE (B. 149: RM13)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

SAMURAI II (B.213; T. 401: RM20)

Robert Motherwell

SAMURAI II (B.213; T. 401: RM20)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

AMERICA--LA FRANCE VARIATIONS II (B.298; T. 444:

Robert Motherwell

AMERICA--LA FRANCE VARIATIONS II (B.298; T. 444:

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

BURNING SUN (B.310; T. 461: RM80)

Robert Motherwell

BURNING SUN (B.310; T. 461: RM80)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

AUSTRALIAN STONE (B. 314)

Robert Motherwell

AUSTRALIAN STONE (B. 314)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

REDNESS OF RED (T. 458:RM77)

Robert Motherwell

REDNESS OF RED (T. 458:RM77)

Sale Date: November 18, 1989

Auction Closed

Bête noire, 1973–1973

Robert Motherwell

Bête noire, 1973–1973

Sale Date: November 9, 1989

Auction Closed

Collage with German music, 1974–1974

Robert Motherwell

Collage with German music, 1974–1974

Sale Date: November 9, 1989

Auction Closed

In ashes with collage, 1949–1949

Robert Motherwell

In ashes with collage, 1949–1949

Sale Date: November 9, 1989

Auction Closed

English (US)

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