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A View No.1 (above) is a case in point. Motherwell described it as his mostabstract expressionist painting. The grey area to the left resembles theshadow of what he called an Elegy, a motif that occurs again and again in hisoeuvre. It became a metaphor for a meditation on life and death, originallyinspired by the horrors of the Spanish Civil War.

“For me,” says Jacobson, “This is more powerful than any Rothko or BarnettNewman because there’s an inner life in it. When you look at a Rembrandtself-portrait, you can never ever get to the end of it...and I think Motherwellhas that ability.”

The mainly monochrome of A View No.1, contains reflections on life’s moralissues conveyed in abstract form through geometric patterns and improvisedswirls that delve into his subconscious. Motherwell was a great intellectualsteeped in philosophy, psychology and literature as well as art. He studied atStanford, Harvard and then Columbia and absorbed many influencesincluding that of the Surrealists.

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Robert Motherwell: Abstract Expressionism



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Robert Motherwell: Abstract Expressionism 19/09/2016 14:25

Bob Chaundy Freelance journalist, ex-BBC News

As a taster to the grand Abstract Expressionism exhibition opening later thismonth at the Royal Academy, the Bernard Jacobson Gallery is hostinganother show that highlights a selection of work from one of this movement’spre-eminent members, Robert Motherwell.

Actually, it’s less of a taster, more of a “smack” to the RA, as BernardJacobson tells me. He feels Motherwell is under-rated by the artestablishment. He has been doing his best over many years to redress thisnotion. Certainly, Motherwell’s work today fetches very high prices.

For Jacobson believes Motherwell, along with Willem de Kooning, was thegiant of the Abstract Expressionist movement that also included such asJackson Pollock, Barnett Newman, Clyfford Still and Mark Rothko. He hasbecome an authority on the artist, not only by buying up much of his workbut by also penning an accomplished biography, Robert Motherwell, The

Making of an American Giant from 2015.

“Though Motherwell was the youngest, he knew more than the others and hewas using everything. His pictures are loaded with so much more than whatyou see,” says Jacobson.

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FRONT PAGE NEWS POLITICS LIFESTYLE PARENTS TECH YOUNG VOICES COMEDY ENTERTAINMENT STYLE WHAT'S WORKING BLOGS

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Robert Motherwell: Abstract Expressionism 19/09/2016 14:25

Bob Chaundy Freelance journalist, ex-BBC News

As a taster to the grand Abstract Expressionism exhibition opening later thismonth at the Royal Academy, the Bernard Jacobson Gallery is hostinganother show that highlights a selection of work from one of this movement’spre-eminent members, Robert Motherwell.

Actually, it’s less of a taster, more of a “smack” to the RA, as BernardJacobson tells me. He feels Motherwell is under-rated by the artestablishment. He has been doing his best over many years to redress thisnotion. Certainly, Motherwell’s work today fetches very high prices.

For Jacobson believes Motherwell, along with Willem de Kooning, was thegiant of the Abstract Expressionist movement that also included such asJackson Pollock, Barnett Newman, Clyfford Still and Mark Rothko. He hasbecome an authority on the artist, not only by buying up much of his workbut by also penning an accomplished biography, Robert Motherwell, The

Making of an American Giant from 2015.

“Though Motherwell was the youngest, he knew more than the others and hewas using everything. His pictures are loaded with so much more than whatyou see,” says Jacobson.

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Quick Read | Comments | 08.19.2016

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A View No.1 (above) is a case in point. Motherwell described it as his mostabstract expressionist painting. The grey area to the left resembles theshadow of what he called an Elegy, a motif that occurs again and again in hisoeuvre. It became a metaphor for a meditation on life and death, originallyinspired by the horrors of the Spanish Civil War.

“For me,” says Jacobson, “This is more powerful than any Rothko or BarnettNewman because there’s an inner life in it. When you look at a Rembrandtself-portrait, you can never ever get to the end of it...and I think Motherwellhas that ability.”

The mainly monochrome of A View No.1, contains reflections on life’s moralissues conveyed in abstract form through geometric patterns and improvisedswirls that delve into his subconscious. Motherwell was a great intellectualsteeped in philosophy, psychology and literature as well as art. He studied atStanford, Harvard and then Columbia and absorbed many influencesincluding that of the Surrealists.


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The Surrealists’ practice of automatism, in which marks are madespontaneously, can be seen most simply in Beside the Sea No.3 (above), oneof a series of works Motherwell painted at Provincetown, Massachusettswhile on honeymoon with the artist Helen Frankenthaler. He watched wavescrashing against a breakwater and to record the experience, he created thisabstract picture by throwing the paint at the canvas in imitation of the ocean.

The New York School, a title Motherwell himself coined for the AbstractExpressionists, took on the European avant-garde from where they left off.While Europe dwindled in the grey aftermath of World War II, ‘50s Americawas a burgeoning power, full of confidence, energy and a willingness toexperiment further. The group’s work became brasher, bigger in scale, usingthe floor as well as the easel, and collage as well as pictures.



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The exhibition features two collages, the first he made and the last. The Blue

Guitar (above) was completed just before he died in 1991, aged 76. It wasinspired by TS Eliot’s allusion-rich poem, The Blue Guitar and by Picasso’sThe Old Guitarist, painted during his so-called Blue Period. DespiteMotherwell’s ill-health, the piece is full of joy and colour. The guitar becomesa manuscript, music being another of Motherwell’s passions.

Motherwell took to collages in a way that fellow Abstract Expressionists likeJackson Pollock did not. The medium was handed down to the pop artiststhat came after. Both the Color Field and Minimalist movements were alsodirect spawns of the New York Movement, confirming that America hadbecome pre-eminent in modern art.




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Yet throughout his career, Robert Motherwell harked back to Europe, and inparticular, to Spain. The Studio (above) from 1987, painted at night wheneveryone had gone, references Lorca, Picasso as well as Matisse. In thecentre are bull’s testicles or an Elegy, or both. It’s another reflection on lifeand death and can be read as a self-portrait with the artist sitting in hisstudio with a recognisable seat and lampshade opposite. Its bold colours arethose of optimism and hope.

Robert Motherwell: Abstract Expressionism also contains examples from theartist’s Elegy and Open series. It runs until 26 November 2016 at the BernardJacobson Gallery, 28 Duke Street, St James, London SW1 6AG.

The images are used with the permission of the gallery.

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The exhibition features two collages, the first he made and the last. The Blue

Guitar (above) was completed just before he died in 1991, aged 76. It wasinspired by TS Eliot’s allusion-rich poem, The Blue Guitar and by Picasso’sThe Old Guitarist, painted during his so-called Blue Period. DespiteMotherwell’s ill-health, the piece is full of joy and colour. The guitar becomesa manuscript, music being another of Motherwell’s passions.

Motherwell took to collages in a way that fellow Abstract Expressionists likeJackson Pollock did not. The medium was handed down to the pop artiststhat came after. Both the Color Field and Minimalist movements were alsodirect spawns of the New York Movement, confirming that America hadbecome pre-eminent in modern art.


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THE BLOG Robert Motherwell: Abstract Expressionism Post 19... · 9/19/2016 Robert Motherwell: Abstract Expressionism | Hufﬁngton Post ﬁngtonpost.co.uk/bob-chaundy/robert-motherwell-abstrac_b_12046446.html?