Robert Motherwell Art
American, 1915-1991
The name of painter, printmaker and writer Robert Motherwell (1915–91) is often taken as synonymous with the New York School, whose name he coined. Motherwell was the youngest of this group of Abstract Expressionists working in art, dance, poetry and music in 1950s and '60s New York City, which included Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Philip Guston, Helen Frankenthaler and Mark Rothko.
Born in Aberdeen, Washington, in 1915, Motherwell had perhaps the broadest and best education of any of the New York School coterie, with an extensive background in philosophy, literature and art history. He earned a BA in philosophy in 1937 from Stanford University and was working toward a PhD in the subject at Harvard when he interrupted his studies for a yearlong trip to Europe, where he fell in love with European modernism.
After returning, in 1940 he enrolled Columbia to study art history. It was there that he met a group of exiled Parisian Surrealists, and encounter that proved influential on his style. Motherwell began to integrate the idea of “automatism” — unmediated gestures that reflect deeper psychological impulses — into his work, pioneering a new form of Abstract Expressionism that came to characterize the New York School.
Works like the 1967 Beside the Sea no. 45, an acrylic on canvas, and the 1966 lithograph New York International epitomize Motherwell’s use of simple shapes in boldly contrasting colors, executed in quick, gestural strokes that occasionally evoke figures, suggesting a latent narrative despite their obvious abstraction.
Throughout his career, Motherwell taught painting at Hunter College, in New York, and at Black Mountain College, in North Carolina, where his work influenced the likes of Cy Twombly, Robert Rauschenberg and Kenneth Noland. His influence as one of the founding fathers of American Abstract Expressionism remains profound.
Color: Gray
Artist: Robert Motherwell
Peace Portfolio I: Untitled /// Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Modern
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Saint Augustine, FL
Artist: Robert Motherwell (American, 1915-1991)
Title: "Peace Portfolio I: Untitled"
Portfolio: Peace Portfolio I
*Signed and numbered by Motherwell in...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Screen
Seaside Studio
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of American abstract painters that radically defined abstraction and...
Category
1990s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Etching, Aquatint
Primal Sign II
By Robert Motherwell
Located in New York, NY
Primal Sign II, 1979-1980
Etching, aquatint
23 x 10’’
Edition of 45
Category
1980s Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Etching, Aquatint
"Untitled" Robert Motherwell from the Portfolio of Nine
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Hinsdale, IL
Robert Motherwell
Untitled (from Portfolio 9), 1967
Lithograph, 1967
22.25 x 17.25 in. (56.52 x 43.82 cm.)
Signed; lower left with artist's trademark initials; numbered,
Publisher...
Category
1960s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
unknown
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Newport Beach, CA
Framed, unique strike with significant hand coloring in acrylic paint on printed 2 color lithograph on paper by American artist Robert Motherwell (1915-1991). Signed in upper left c...
Category
1970s Abstract Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Paper, Ink, Acrylic
Paris Suite 1 (Spring)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Robert Motherwell
Paris Suite I (Spring)
1980
Lithograph on J.B. Green handmade paper, Edition of 60
48.9 x 48.9 cms (19 1/4 x 19 1/4 ins)
RM17031
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
Palo Alto
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of American abstract painters that radically defined abstraction and...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
Basque Suite #2
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of abstract painters that radically defined Modern painting in Ameri...
Category
1970s Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Screen
America La France Variations II
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Robert Motherwell (1915-1991) is one of the essential American abstract painters that radically defined post-war abstraction in New York City.
Today, his work appears in museum collections around the world and is instantly recognizable for its boldness and black forms. His auction record was set in 2018 at $12.6 million USD.
In addition to his impressive paintings, Motherwell is also revered as a printmaker. He is one of the most innovative and prolific printmakers of the 20th century. He was always searching for new techniques, whether at his own printmaking atelier, or collaborating with others, to expand his ideas and express his aesthetic.
"America-La France...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
London Series II: Untitled (Blue/Cream) by Robert Motherwell
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Hinsdale, IL
ROBERT MOTHERWELL
(1915-1991)
London Series II: Untitled (Blue/Pale Blue)
Screenprint in color on J.B. Green paper, c. 1971
Initialed and numbered by the artist, full ...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Screen
Lincoln Center's Mostly Mozart Festival - 25th Anniversary
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Aramits, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Robert Motherwell, American (1915 - 1991)
Lincoln Center's Mostly Mozart Festival, 25th Anniversary.
Lithograph, Edition of 800, unsigned and unnumber...
Category
1990s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph, Screen
London Series II: Untitled (Blue/Pale Blue)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in New York, NY
Edition of 150
Category
1970s Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Screen
The Persian II
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of American abstract painters that radically defined Modern painting...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
Paris Suite (Autumn)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Robert Motherwell (1915-1991) is one of the essential American abstract painters that radically defined post-war abstraction in New York City.
Today, his work appears in museum collections around the world and is instantly recognizable for its boldness and black forms. His auction record was set in 2018 at $12.6 million USD.
In addition to his impressive paintings, Motherwell is also revered as one of the most innovative and prolific printmakers of the 20th century. He was always searching for new techniques, whether at his own printmaking atelier, or collaborating with others, to expand his ideas and express his aesthetic.
Created in 1980, "Paris Suite...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
Rites of Passage II
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Robert Motherwell (1915-1991), alongside Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning, made up the quartet of American abstract painters that radically defined abstraction and established New York City as the center of the art world for the second half of the 20th century.
Motherwell was also the unofficial spokesman of the New York School, writing, teaching and lecturing on behalf of the movement, his fellow artists, and the merits of abstraction.
His work appears in museum collections around the world and is instantly recognizable for its boldness and black forms. Yet in addition to his impressive paintings, Motherwell is also revered as a printmaker. He is one of the most innovative and prolific printmakers of the 20th century. He was always searching for new techniques, whether at his own printmaking atelier, or collaborating with others, to expand his ideas and express his aesthetic.
This print, along with "El General", was created at Tyler Graphics in 1979.
"Rites of Passage II...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Handmade Paper, Lithograph
The Basque Suite: Untitled
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Edition of 150
104.1 x 71.7 cms (41 x 28 1/4 ins)
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Screen
Tricolor 137
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Mount Vernon, NY
Date: 1973
Lithograph, signed in the plate
Image Size: 12 x 9 inches
Category
1970s Modern Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
Untitled
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
29.88 x 22.36 ins (75.9 x 56.8 cms)
Edition of 96
Signature:Signed "R. Motherwell" in pencil lower right
Inscriptions:Numbered in pencil lower right; artist's chop mark lower right
...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Color, Etching, Aquatint
España II
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Robert Motherwell
Espana II
1983
Aquatint and lift-ground etching on Moulin du Gue Rives de Lin paper
Edition of 40
31.8 x 26.7 cms (12.5 x 10.5 ins)
RME9319
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Etching, Aquatint
Lincoln Center Mostly Mozart, 25th Anniversary, Lithograph by Robert Motherwell
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Robert Motherwell, American (1915 - 1991)
Title: Lincoln Center Mostly Mozart, 25th Anniversary
Year: 1991
Medium: Lithograph and Screenprint on ...
Category
1990s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph, Screen
No. 2 from Three Poems
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Robert Motherwell, American (1915 - 1991)
Title: No. 2 from Three Poems, collaboration with Octavio Paz
Year: 1987
Medium: Lithograph on Japon with Chine Colle
Edition: 750
...
Category
1980s Modern Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Rice Paper, Lithograph
For Meyer Schapiro: Tallith for Meyer Schapiro
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Robert Motherwell
For Meyer Schapiro: Tallith for Meyer Schapiro
1974
Lift-ground etching and aquatint on Arches Cover paper
Ed. 100, 13 AP, 1 CP, 11 HC
105.4 x 74.9 cms (41.5 x 29.5...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Etching, Aquatint
Bicentennial Suite
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Santa Fe, NM
French Revolution Bicentennial Suite is a set of four 1988 aquatints with photoengraving and collage elements by Robert Motherwell. The iconic Suite is hand signed in graphite by Mot...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Aquatint
The Basque Suite: Untitled
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Colour screenprint on J.B. Green paper
104.1 x 71.7 cms (41 x 28 1/4 ins)
Edition of 150
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Color, Screen
Paris Suite 3 (Autumn)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Robert Motherwell
Paris Suite III (Autumn)
1980
Lithograph on J.B. Green handmade paper, Edition of 60
49.2 x 56.8 cms (19 1/2 x 22 1/2 ins)
RM17035
CR 26...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
Stoneness of Stone
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Robert Motherwell
The Stoneness of the Stone
Edition 75
1974
Lithograph on light gray Twinrocker handmade paper laminated to medium gray Twinrocker handmade paper
104.1 x 76.2 cms (4...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
Paris Suite 4 (Winter)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Robert Motherwell
Paris Suite IV (Winter)
1980
Lithograph on J.B. Green handmade paper, Edition of 60
47 x 45.7 cms (18.5 x 18 ins)
RM17036
CR 267
18 1/2 ...
Category
1980s Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
Lyric Suite
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Brown ink with orange bleed on rice paper
22.9 x 27.9 cms (9 x 11 ins)
Category
20th Century Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Ink
Abstract Composition - Original color Etching and Aquatint - 1967
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Paris, FR
Robert MOTHERWELL
Abstract Composition
Original etching and aquatint
Unsigned
On Johannot vellum
37.5 x 28 cm (c. 15 x 11 inch)
Published by Lazar Vernet in 1967 and limited to 200 ...
Category
1960s Abstract Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Etching, Aquatint
Gesture Series (A)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Acrylic on paper
77.5 x 57.2 cms (30 1/2 x 22 1/2 ins)
The composition of this work anticipates the 1971 lithograph Samurai.
Throughout his career Motherwell was drawn to automatis...
Category
20th Century Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Acrylic
Frontispiece from" A la Pintura"
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Palm Desert, CA
A print by Robert Motherwell. "Frontispiece from 'A la Pintura'" is an aquatint executed in blue and brown and depicts the writing A la Pintura below a small blue rectangle by Post War artist Robert Motherwell. Signed lower right, in ink, "Robert Motherwell 1972...
Category
1970s Post-War Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Aquatint
Roth-Handle
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
CR 168
Paper:Auvergne à la Main Richard de Bas handmade paper; offset-printed Roth Händle cigarette label
Signature:Signed "RM" in pencil upper right
Inscriptions:Numbered in pencil ...
Category
Mid-20th Century Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Aquatint
Poet II - Lithograph, Abstract Print, 20th Century by Robert Motherwell
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Edition of 35
75.6 x 53.7 cms (29.76 x 21.14 ins)
Category
1960s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
The Basque Suite: Untitled
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
104.1 x 71.8 cms (41 x 28.25 ins)
Edition of 150
Paper: J.B. Green Paper
Signed "RM" in pencil lower right; signed "Motherwell" in screen lower right
Inscriptions: Numbered in ...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Color, Screen
Carnegie Hall
By Robert Motherwell
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork, titled "Carnegie Hall," from the suite New York, New York, 1982, is an original color lithograph with silkscreen and embossing by American ...
Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph, Screen
America - La France Variations IX
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Lithograph and collage
Edition of 60
72.4 x 55.3 cms (28 1/2 x 21 3/4 ins)
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
Dedication–Lincoln Center (B.App.23)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
44.5 x 29.25 ins (113 x 74.3 cms)
Edition of 108
Signature:Signed "R. Motherwell" in pencil lower left
Inscriptions:Numbered in pencil lower left; some impressions have artist's chop mark lower left
Publisher:The Juilliard School...
Category
1960s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Color, Mixed Media, Screen
Lament for Lorca
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Lithograph on white Tyler Graphics Ltd. (TGL) handmade paper
44x61 in (111.8x154.9cm)
Edition of 52
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Color, Lithograph
Harvest With Blue Bottom, from Summer Light Series
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Miami, FL
TECHNICAL INFORMATION:
Robert Motherwell
Harvest With Blue Bottom, from Summer Light Series
1973
Lithograph with collage
36 x 18 in.
Edition of 55
Pencil signed and numbered; accomp...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph, Mixed Media
The Hospital
By Robert Motherwell
Located in San Francisco, CA
Original etching printed in two colors on Johannot wove paper.
Hand-signed with the artist’s monogram in pencil in the margin lower right RM.
A superb impression of the definit...
Category
20th Century Abstract Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Etching
Red Sea III
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Aquatint and lift-ground etching on Georges Duchêne Hawthorne of Larroque handmade paper, Edition of 70
1983
90.2 x 46.4 cms (35 1/2 x 18 1/4 ins)
Category
1980s Abstract Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Etching, Aquatint
Norway
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
54.9 x 56.5 cms (21.6 x 22.25 ins)
Edition of 50
Paper: Somerset paper
Signature:Signed "RM" in pencil lower right
Inscriptions:Numbered in pencil lower right
Proofs:20 AP, numbered I/XX-XX/XX, 2 HC, numbered I-II, 3 PP, 1 TP, other proofs (unrecorded)
Publisher:Derriere LEtoile Studios, New York, for the Sonja Henie...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Color, Lithograph
Put out all Flags
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Aquatint, lift-ground etching and aquatint on German Etching paper
53.3 x 73.7 cms (21 x 29 ins)
Edition of 50
Category
1980s Abstract Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Etching, Aquatint
Game of Chance
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
88.3 x 69.9 cms (34.7 x 27.51 ins)
Edition of 100
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Mixed Media, Color, Aquatint, Lithograph
Mexican Night II
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
44.5 x 44.5 cms (17.5 x 17.5 ins)
Edition of 70
Signature:Signed "Motherwell" in pencil lower right
Inscriptions:Numbered in pencil lower right; artist's chop mark lower right
...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Color, Etching, Aquatint
Summer
By Robert Motherwell
Located in New York, NY
An original lithograph of certain beauty, Paris Suite II: Summer, by Robert Motherwell is hand-initialed in pencil measuring 19 ¼ x 16 1/8 in (49 x 41 cm), unframed. From the editio...
Category
20th Century Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
America La France Variations III
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Robert Motherwell (1915-1991) is one of the essential American abstract painters who radically defined post-war abstraction in New York City.
Today, his work appears in museum colle...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
America La-France Variations IX
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Palo Alto, CA
Created in 1984, this lithograph and collage on paper is hand-signed by Robert Motherwell (Aberdeen, 1915 - Provincetown, 1991) in pencil in the lower right margin. Numbered from the...
Category
1980s Modern Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Mixed Media, Lithograph
Dr. Zhivago's Country Study
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Robert Motherwell
Dr. Zhivago's Country Study
1975
Acrylic on canvas board
14 x 45.7 cms (5 1/2 x 18 ins)
RM9816
P853
Recto, upper left: Motherwell \ 75
Verso: "Dr Zhivago's Country...
Category
1970s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Acrylic
Open Untitled (Yellow)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Robert Motherwell
Open Untitled (Yellow)
1981
Acrylic and charcoal on canvas
30.5 x 40.6 cms (12 x 16 ins)
RM10045
P1019
Recto upper left: RM
Verso not signed,not dated
Artist's stu...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Charcoal, Acrylic
The Basque Suite: Untitled (ref. 86)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in New York, NY
Robert Motherwell
The Basque Suite: Untitled (ref. 86), 1971
screenprint on J.B. Green paper, ed. of 150
41 x 28 1/4 in. (104.1 x 71.8 cm)
Category
1970s Abstract Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Screen
London Series II: Untitled (Orange/Pink)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in New York, NY
Robert Motherwell
London Series II: Untitled (Orange/Pink), 1971
screenprint on white J.B. Green mould-made Double Elephant paper, ed. of 150
28 1/2 x 41...
Category
1970s Abstract Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Screen
London Series II: Untitled (Blue/Cream)
By Robert Motherwell
Located in New York, NY
Robert Motherwell
London Series II: Untitled (Blue/Cream), 1971
screenprint on white J.B. Green mould-made Double Elephant paper, ed. of 150
28 1/2 x 41 ...
Category
1970s Abstract Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Screen
America - La France variations IV, 17/68 color lithograph with collage
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Three Oaks, MI
America-La France Variations IV 1984. Lithograph in colors with collage on Tyler Graphics Ltd. handmade paper. Signed in pencil Numbered 17/68 (there were also XVIII artist’s proofs ...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
America - La France variations I, 46/70 color lithograph with collage
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Three Oaks, MI
America-La France Variations I 1983-4. Lithograph in colors with collage on Tyler Graphics Ltd. handmade paper. Signed in pencil Numbered 46/70 (there were also XVIII artist’s proofs...
Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Lithograph
The Red and Black No. 52
By Robert Motherwell
Located in Houston, TX
Robert Motherwell's "The Red and Black No.52" is an abstract collage that incorporates oil based etching ink, pasted papers, and aquatint on paper. The piece was created between the ...
Category
1980s Modern Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Paper, Ink, Aquatint
Untitled
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Acrylic on paper
79.1 x 106.4 cms (31 1/8 x 41 15/16 ins)
Category
20th Century Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Acrylic
French Revolution Bicentennial No. 5
By Robert Motherwell
Located in London, GB
Acrylic, enamel and pasted papers on paper
25.4 x 35.6 cms (10 x 14 ins)
Category
20th Century Abstract Expressionist Robert Motherwell Art
Materials
Mixed Media
Robert Motherwell art for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Robert Motherwell art available for sale on 1stDibs. If you’re browsing the collection of art to introduce a pop of color in a neutral corner of your living room or bedroom, you can find work that includes elements of orange, red, blue and other colors. You can also browse by medium to find art by Robert Motherwell in lithograph, etching, paint and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the abstract style. Not every interior allows for large Robert Motherwell art, so small editions measuring 1 inch across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Sam Francis, Paul Jenkins, and Helen Frankenthaler. Robert Motherwell art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $150 and tops out at $3,600,000, while the average work can sell for $9,500.
Artists Similar to Robert Motherwell
Questions About Robert Motherwell Art
- 1stDibs ExpertApril 5, 2022Robert Motherwell was a part of the art movement called Abstract Expressionism. Artists who participated in the movement sought to express emotions through abstract forms. You'll find a range of Robert Motherwell art from some of the world’s top sellers on 1stDibs.
- How did Motherwell paint?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertMarch 22, 2022Robert Motherwell painted using techniques borrowed from action and color field painting. He sometimes dipped thinned paint right onto the canvas. In other works, he soaked paints into an unprimed work surface. Find a variety of Robert Motherwell art on 1stDibs.