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Robert Motherwell: career timeline

American · 1915–1991 · Works grouped by the decade they were made (the cataloged date, or a date in the signature or title), not by sale date. 627 of 703 lots (89% of works) have a usable creation date; the others are listed at the end by the decade they were sold. Each work is shown once, even when it sold more than once.

Robert Motherwell: works at auction by decade the work was made. Each work counted once; medians use sold works only, in US dollars.
Decade madeWorksSoldMedian sold priceMain medium
1940s33$16.3kSign upWatercolor
1950s98$36.3kSign upDrawing
1960s8070$2kSign upLithograph
1970s248212$3kSign upLithograph
1980s266242$3.3kSign upLithograph
1990s1815$6.3kSign upLithograph

Where does mine fit?

Enter what you know about a work by Robert Motherwell to see the closest recorded works from the same period, with their auction results. These are past records only, not a valuation: condition, authenticity, provenance and the market all change what a work brings. For an auction estimate of your work, get a free auction estimate.

1940s 3 works

Sold
3 of 3
Median
$16.3kSign up
Average
$18.4kSign up
Typical size
15.5 × 12 in (39 × 31 cm)
Mediums
Watercolor (1), Print (other) (1), Etching (1)
Subjects
—

1950s 9 works

Sold
8 of 9
Median
$36.3kSign up
Average
$489kSign up
Typical size
13 × 14.5 in (33 × 36 cm)
Mediums
Drawing (4), Oil (4), Watercolor (1)
Subjects
—

1960s 80 works

Sold
70 of 80
Median
$2kSign up
Average
$72.7kSign up
Typical size
22 × 19 in (56 × 48 cm)
Mediums
Lithograph (41), Screenprint (16), Acrylic (11)
Subjects
Sea & coast (2), Figures & portraits (1)
Show 12 more (1960s)

…and 56 more works from this group in the full results list.

1970s 248 works

Sold
212 of 248
Median
$3kSign up
Average
$81.8kSign up
Typical size
28 × 21.5 in (71 × 54 cm)
Mediums
Lithograph (92), Screenprint (89), Etching (24)
Subjects
Sea & coast (5), Birds (1)
Show 12 more (1970s)

…and 224 more works from this group in the full results list.

1980s 266 works

Sold
242 of 266
Median
$3.3kSign up
Average
$28.6kSign up
Typical size
17.5 × 19.5 in (45 × 50 cm)
Mediums
Lithograph (137), Etching (91), Aquatint (24)
Subjects
Figures & portraits (12), Sea & coast (6), Abstract (2)
Show 12 more (1980s)

…and 242 more works from this group in the full results list.

1990s 18 works

Sold
15 of 18
Median
$6.3kSign up
Average
$13.4kSign up
Typical size
21 × 23.5 in (54 × 60 cm)
Mediums
Lithograph (9), Etching (5), Aquatint (2)
Subjects
—
Show 6 more (1990s)

Creation date not recorded

75 works have no cataloged or signed date. They are grouped here by the decade they were last sold, which says nothing about when they were made.

Undated, sold in the 2000s 4 works

Sold
4 of 4
Median
$6.6kSign up
Average
$12.6kSign up
Typical size
34.5 × 25.5 in (88 × 64 cm)
Mediums
Lithograph (3), Mixed media (1)
Subjects
Sea & coast (1)

Undated, sold in the 2010s 34 works

Sold
31 of 34
Median
$2.5kSign up
Average
$5.4kSign up
Typical size
23 × 23.5 in (58 × 59 cm)
Mediums
Other (21), Lithograph (4), Screenprint (3)
Subjects
Sea & coast (2), Birds (1)
Show 6 more (2010s)

…and 22 more works from this group in the full results list.

Undated, sold in the 2020s 37 works

Sold
26 of 37
Median
$2.7kSign up
Average
$6kSign up
Typical size
25.5 × 21 in (65 × 53 cm)
Mediums
Lithograph (16), Screenprint (9), Etching (6)
Subjects
—
Show 6 more (2020s)

…and 25 more works from this group in the full results list.

Medians and averages count sold works only (each work's most recent sale), in US dollars at the sale-date rate. Works cataloged as “attributed to”, “circle of” or similar are left out. All Robert Motherwell auction results →