Robert MotherwellOpen Study (White Line on Beige No. 1)1968
1968
About the Item
- Creator:Robert Motherwell (1915-1991, American)
- Creation Year:1968
- Dimensions:Height: 30.5 in (77.47 cm)Width: 22 in (55.88 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:London, GB
- Reference Number:
Robert Motherwell
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.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: London, United Kingdom
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
- Untitled (SFP94-78) (SFF.1754)By Sam FrancisLocated in London, GBSam Francis Untitled (SFF.1704) 1994 Acrylic on canvas 38.1 x 45.7 cms (15 x 18 ins) Provenance: Estate of the artist, California, 1994; Galleri Faurschou, Copenhagen, June 1996; ...Category
1990s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic
- Open #125: JeannieBy Robert MotherwellLocated in London, GBRobert Motherwell Open #125: Jeannie 1969 Acrylic and charcoal on canvasboard 76.2 x 50.8 cms (30 x 20 ins) RM9796 P532 The title of this painting refers to Motherwell's elder daugh...Category
1960s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Charcoal, Acrylic
- Elegy to the Spanish Republic No. 110CBy Robert MotherwellLocated in London, GBRobert Motherwell Elegy to the Spanish Republic No. 110C 1968 Acrylic and graphite on paper 15.2 x 20.3 cms (6 x 8 ins) Robert Motherwell's Elegies series represent one of the iconic motifs of Abstract Expressionism. Based on a 1948 ink illustration the artist executed accompanying a Harold Rosenberg poem, “A Bird for every bird,” the drawing shows the hypnotically repetitive patterning of ovoids and vertical beams. The stark contrast of the black ink on white paper references the symbolic use of the color black by artists such as Goya, Manet and Matisse to convey death, loss, and tragedy. Motherwell was quite affected by the turbulence of the Spanish Civil War and alludes to the Spanish republic in his Elegies. Motherwell’s plumbing the depths of poetry, history, and primordial art in the Elegies is considered a hallmark of nascent Abstract Expressionist painting in its desire to "excavate" essential imagery of mankind. Motherwell, who originally trained as a philosophy scholar and later became of the great editors of 20th century art documents, grasped very early on the crucial importance that in order to contribute meaningfully to the canon of modern art, one must create a principle of aesthetics. Through the surrealist concept of automatism, the artist finally found the creative principle that eventually governed his extraordinary artistic output and produced the Elegies, one of the most salient, immediate painterly images of 20th century abstract painting. In fact, he has alluded to the fact that each one of his Elegies begins as an automatic drawing, and certain shapes are then blocked to create the signature armature of the vertical bars and ovals. The Elegies seem to possess the power of an archetypal image, an image the mind already grasps on a subconscious level. Motherwell's play of dualities of black and white as well as other dichotomies—the geometric versus the organic, chaos versus order, death versus life—was a condition of living through a tumultuous period in American history. During an interview, he vividly recalled the 1940s as the time when society was ordered by a set of contradictions. In Motherwell's Elegies, he not only discovered an incredibly elastic pictorial language that would communicate on multiple levels but also acknowledged these contradictions in a manner that would resonate in abstract form. The present work served as a model for a painting, Spanish Elegy...Category
1960s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic, Laid Paper, Graphite
- Untitled (Iron Forest)By Sam FrancisLocated in London, GBSam Francis (1923-1994) Untitled (Iron Forest) 1989 Acrylic on prepared paper 91.4 x 182.9 cms (36 x 72 ins) SF012Category
Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic
- Homage to CataloniaBy Robert MotherwellLocated in London, GBRobert Motherwell Homage to Catalonia 1985 Acrylic on canvas 61 x 91.4 cms (24 x 36 ins) RM14749 P1116 This painting was begun in 1985 as a work from the Hollow Men series. By 1986 ...Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic
- Shem the Penman #18By Robert MotherwellLocated in London, GBRobert Motherwell Shem the Penman #18 1983 Acrylic and charcoal on canvas 25.4 x 35.5 cms (10 x 13 3/4 ins) RM10044 P1068 Signed upper left and on reverse. Provenance: Dedalus Foun...Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsCharcoal, Acrylic
- Abstract Expressionist Painting Titled, "Shift"Located in San Diego, CAThis is a one of a kind original abstract expressionist painting by local San Diego artist, Kelsey Overstreet. This is an acrylic on canvas and its d...Category
2010s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic
- Colorful Abstract Painting by Michel PicotteLocated in Long Island City, NYBlack and Red Abstract Michel Picotte, Canadian (1947) Date: 1984 Acrylic on paper, signed and dated in pen Image Size: 28.25 x 21 inches Size: 30 x 22 ...Category
1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic
- Red Arc, Colorful Abstract Painting by Jackie BattenfieldBy Jackie BattenfieldLocated in Long Island City, NYRed Arc Jackie Battenfield, American Acrylic on paper, signed and dated in pencil Size: 30 x 22 in. (76.2 x 55.88 cm) Frame Size: 34 x 25.5 inchesCategory
1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic
- White Roses abstract painting of roses by Fereshteh StoeckleinBy Fereshteh StoeckleinLocated in London, GBFereshteh's abstract painting is inspired by the stunning white roses which are in her daughter's garden in Wimbledon. They come back year after year fully of glory and confidence. Could be hung landscape or portrait. ABOUT FERESHTEH STOECKLEIN Fereshteh Stoecklein artistic journey began at the impressionist school of painting ‘Ecole des Arts Francais’. Her husband’s career as a hotelier of a luxury hotel chain meant living in many different countries, so to her exploration of art followed suit. In Malaysia, she was inspired by Chinese brush painting, studying under three masters in the art of calligraphy, Chinese ink and colour brush painting. Her versatility as an artist has expanded such that she has painted Chinese brush to watercolours to abstract acrylics - a truly astounding creative palette. Always producing exquisite abstract works taking their inspiration from nature, places she has visited and people she has observed. An award winning artist, Fereshteh’s works have been exhibited in a number of international exhibitions including ‘Art Now’ at Oxo Tower London...Category
2010s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsAcrylic
- Brainiac III Abstract, Large-Scale Vertical Abstract in Neutrals, Black & WhiteBy Michael PaukerLocated in Soquel, CALarge-scale vertical abstract of brains in a neutral color palette of black & white by Bay Area artist Michael Pauker (American, b.1957). Unsigned, but was acquired with a collection...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Acrylic, Oil
- Abstract Assemblage by Michael PaukerBy Michael PaukerLocated in Soquel, CALarge-scale abstracted assemblage/mixed media of the artist's materials and partially finished works by Bay Area artist Michael Pauker (American, b.1957...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings
MaterialsOil, Canvas, Acrylic