Robert Motherwell
Robert Motherwell
1915 - 1991
Robert Motherwell was a heavyweight of American post-war painters and one of the most prolific of the abstract expressionists, with an energetic and varied career that continued until his death in 1991. Initially pursuing an academic career studying philosophy, first at Stanford and later Harvard, in 1939 Motherwell moved to New York to pursue his interest in art at Columbia University. He was encouraged to devote himself fully to painting under the tutelage of art historian Meyer Schapiro, and was introduced to the Surrealists and intellectuals who were arriving from war-torn Europe. Serving as a link between the European and American avant-garde, Motherwell would develop into one of the youngest and most vibrant members of the New York School, an informal vanguard of artists, poets, musicians and dancers active in the 1950s and 1960s. Motherwell was principally a proponent of the Surrealist methods of automatism, approaching painting without preconception and allowing the brush to move freely and spontaneously in order to express the interior, unconscious psyche. His large-scale canvases were defined principally by bold, gestural shapes against fields of colour, and drew inspiration from modernist literature, poetry, contemporary politics, and Symbolism. In addition to his canvases, Motherwell would produce hundreds of prints as well as collages over the course of his career, and was also a prolific writer and lecturer.
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August Sea #5 by Robert Motherwell sold for $2,161,260
Robert Motherwell
August Sea #5
72 x 48 in 182.9 x 121.9 cm
acrylic and charcoal on canvas
Estimate: $2,000,000 - $2,500,000 CDN
Sold for: $2,161,260 CDN (premium included)
The Joan Stewart Clarke Collection - International Art on Wednesday, June 01, 2022
Africa Suite: Africa 5 by Robert Motherwell sold for $17,500
Robert Motherwell
Africa Suite: Africa 5
31 3/4 x 23 3/4 in 80.6 x 60.3 cm
screenprint on paper
Estimate: $3,000 - $5,000 CDN
Sold for: $17,500 CDN (premium included)
International Graphics & Pop Art on Thursday, October 25, 2018
The Berggruen Series by Robert Motherwell sold for $8,750
Robert Motherwell
The Berggruen Series
lithograph on paper
Estimate: $8,000 - $12,000 CDN
Sold for: $8,750 CDN (premium included)
International Graphics & Pop Art on Thursday, April 25, 2019
Dance I by Robert Motherwell sold for $5,313
Robert Motherwell
Dance I
9 3/4 x 23 5/8 in 24.8 x 60 cm
1978
etching and aquatint
Estimate: $6,000 - $8,000 CDN
Sold for: $5,313 CDN (premium included)
International Graphics and Pop Art Prints on Thursday, October 26, 2017
Pauillac #1 by Robert Motherwell sold for $4,130
Robert Motherwell
Pauillac #1
36 x 23 1/2 in 91.4 x 59.7 cm
1973
screenprint and collage with embossing
Estimate: $2,000 - $3,000 CDN
Sold for: $4,130 CDN (premium included)
June 2014 - 3rd Session on Thursday, June 26, 2014
America - La France Variations IV by Robert Motherwell sold for $4,130
Robert Motherwell
America - La France Variations IV
41 x 26 in 104.1 x 66 cm
lithograph and collage
Estimate: $3,500 - $4,500 CDN
Sold for: $4,130 CDN (premium included)
April 2016 - 3rd Session on Thursday, April 28, 2016
Untitled by Robert Motherwell sold for $2,813
Robert Motherwell
Untitled
35 1/2 x 17 3/4 in 90.2 x 45.1 cm
1973
etching and aquatint on paper
Estimate: $2,500 - $3,500 CDN
Sold for: $2,813 CDN (premium included)
International Graphics on Thursday, October 31, 2019
Untitled by Robert Motherwell sold for $2,813
Robert Motherwell
Untitled
28 1/4 x 22 1/4 in 71.8 x 56.5 cm
brushed aquatint, lift ground etching and aquatint
Estimate: $2,500 - $3,500 CDN
Sold for: $2,813 CDN (premium included)
Pop Art Prints & International Graphics on Thursday, April 29, 2021
Black Sea by Robert Motherwell sold for $2,500
Robert Motherwell
Black Sea
23 x 18 1/4 in 58.4 x 46.4 cm
etching and aquatint on paper
Estimate: $3,000 - $5,000 CDN
Sold for: $2,500 CDN (premium included)
Pop Art Prints & International Graphics on Thursday, October 27, 2022
Untitled by Robert Motherwell sold for $1,989
Robert Motherwell
Untitled
19 x 19 1/4 in 48.3 x 48.9 cm
lithograph with Chine-collé
Estimate: $2,500 - $3,500 CDN
Sold for: $1,989 CDN (premium included)
April 2013 - 2nd Session on Thursday, April 25, 2013