Final Paper

ROBERT MOTHERWELL 4

Topic: Robert Motherwell

General Purpose: To Inform

Specific Purpose: To Inform my audience about the contribution of Robert Motherwell in

Painting to the promotion of the movement of Abstract Expressionism.

Thesis: Robert Motherwell played a key role in the promotion of the movement of

Abstract Expressionism.

I. Introduction

A. Attention Getter: ‘It is disastrous to name ourselves’, answered the painter

Willem de Koonig in a panel discussion when the former

Director of the New York museum of modern art, Alfred H. Barr, Jr., demanded: ‘We should have a name for which we can blame the artists – for once in history!’ But they had to have a name; The First Generation of Abstract Expressionism.

B. Reason to Listen: As lovers of Art, we cannot dare underplay the role of Abstract expressionism in Modern Art. Its advent led to the rise of New York over Paris as the home of Modern Art.

C. Thesis Statement: Robert Motherwell played a key role in the promotion of the movement of Abstract Expressionism.

D. Credibility Statement:

1. I have been an avid fan of Robert Motherwell for as long as I can remember.

2. I have studied abstract expressionism for years, being involved in a number of academic studies on the same.

E. Preview of Main Points

1. First, I will discuss Abstract Expressionism.

2. Second, I will discuss the artistic description of Robert Motherwell.

3. Finally, I will discuss the contribution of Robert Motherwell to the movement.

II. Body

A. .Abstract Expressionism was never an ideal label for the movement which grew up in New York in the 1940s and 1950s. It was somehow meant to encompass not only the painters who filled their canvases with fields of color and abstract forms, but also those who attacked their canvases with a vigorous gestural expressionism. Yet Abstract Expressionism has become the most accepted term for a group of artists who did hold much in common.

1. Most of the artists associated with abstract expressionism matured in the 1930s.

2. Having matured as artists at a time when America suffered economically and felt culturally isolated and provincial, they were later welcomed as the first authentically American avant-garde.

3. The milieu of Abstract Expressionism united sculptors as David Smith as well as photographers like Aaron Siskind but above all the movement was one of painters.

B. Transition: Now that I have discussed the movement itself, I will now discuss the artistic description of the visionary, Robert Motherwell.

Possessing perhaps the best and most extensive formal education of all the New York School painters, Robert Motherwell was well versed in literature, philosophy and the European modernist traditions.

1. His paintings, prints and collages feature simple shapes, bold color contrasts and a dynamic balance between restrained and boldly gestural brush strokes. They reflect not only

2. His works not only reflect a dialogue with art history, philosophy and contemporary art, but also a sincere and considered engagement with autobiographical content, contempary events and the essential human conditions of life, death, oppression and revolution.

3. Some of his most important works of art are:

a) Pancho Villa, Dead and Alive (1943).

b) At Five in the Afternoon (1949)

c) Je t’aime No.2 (1955)

d) Elegy to the Spanish Republic No. 110 (1971)

e) The Blue Painting Lesson (1973)

f) Tobacco Roth-Handle (1974)

C. Transition: Now that we have learned about who Robert Motherwell was as a painter, let us now discuss his role in the growth of the movement.

Robert Motherwell was not only a prolific artist until his death two decades ago, but also gained recognition as a writer and teacher on Abstract Expressionism. Through his articles he became an unofficial spokesman and interpreter for the movement. His artwork also played a major role in the development of the movement.

1. One example of the pieces was the series he entitled “Elegy to the Spanish Republic” (1965-67). A classic Motherwell image, featuring his trademark large black ovals pushing dark yellow shapes at the edges and imparting feelings of a dark strength and suffering, it is among his most moving works. As the title indicates, and not withstanding a growing skepticism, he continued until the end of his life to feel great sympathy for potentially emancipatory struggles such as the Spanish Revolution.

2. Several key themes define Motherwell’s work: the dialogue between repression and rebellion, between European modernism and a new American vision, and between formal and emotional approaches to art making.

3. Motherwell was an accomplished printmaker and an avid collagist, and he often used these techniques to engage with and respond to the influences of European modernism.

III. Conclusion

1. Review of Main Points.

a) First, I will discuss Abstract Expressionism.

b) Second, I will discuss the artistic description of Robert Motherwell.

c) Finally, I will discuss the contribution of Robert Motherwell to the movement.

2. Restate Thesis.

Robert Motherwell played a key role in the promotion of the movement of Abstract Expressionism.

3. Closure.

In conclusion, we should all appreciate Robert Motherwell for his role in developing the Abstraction Expressionism movement. Through his moving works and eloquent presentations, he gave us an insight into the works of the First Line of Abstract Expressionists and a better understanding of Abstract art.