Robert Motherwell: Collages and Works on Paper

Born in 1915 in Aberdeen (Washington, USA), Motherwell decided to devote himself professionally to art at the age of 26, after an extensive education in both Philosophy and Art History at the universities of Stanford, Harvard and Columbia. Motherwell became a leading spokesman for the Abstract Expressionist movement and was greatly influenced, like many of his contemporaries, by the Surrealists. This introduced to Motherwell ‘automatism’, a practice that strives to create without conscious thought. Throughout his career, he stated that his work was an experimentation in visualising his feelings. Referring to his automatic practice as “doodling”, Motherwell tapped into his deepest thoughts in order to produce pictorial imagination, which set him aside from contemporaries who were often characterised by definitive artistic techniques.

In 1940 Motherwell began printmaking, and what started as a divertissement became a central component of his artistic practice. He was interested in the technical process of printmaking and became knowledgeable in the various methods of printing, but predominantly favoured lithography due to its material appearing like ink or crayon. These techniques formed another basis upon which to transpose his artistic vocabulary. One of the most notable characteristics of his prints are his calligraphic gestures, offering a sense of spontaneity and a strong resemblance to his drawings.

Motherwell’s works are full of exploration, recording the transitions of his unconscious emotions onto paper. Motherwell was particularly drawn to this medium and admired its physical qualities, often allowing him to spontaneously draw with a sense of immediacy, liberated from the constraints presented by painting. Motherwell resisted the preconceived notion that works on paper are of lesser value, instead emphasising the medium’s significance in its explorative potential. Alongside his drawings, Motherwell produced many collages which were similarly used as a mode to channel his visual vocabulary and apply his automatic gesture. Such materiality enabled an intimate insight into the mind and artistic process, freeing his gestural impulses.