The Collected Writings of Robert Motherwell (Documents of Twentieth Century Art) [Paperback]

Robert Motherwell (Author), Stephanie Terenzio (Editor), Jack Flam (Foreword)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0520221796 | ISBN-13: 978-0520221796 | Publication Date: November 16, 1999 | Edition: 1

This book brings together a representative selection of Robert Motherwell's writings about art, public lectures, essays, interviews, and letters. Motherwell's writing was invaluable in articulating the intent of the New York School of American artists--Pollock, de Kooning, Gottlieb, Kline, Baziotes, Still, Gorky--during a period when their work was often reviled for its departure from traditional representation. Motherwell was not only the primary theorist of abstract expressionism but also one of its major exponents. As founder of the Documents of Modern Art series (later renamed The Documents of Twentieth-Century Art), he gathered the writings of modern artists to give them a voice at a time when very few people understood their theories or work.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A chief spokesman for Abstract Expressionism in the 1950s and a voice of New York's artistic avant-garde in the following decades, Robert Motherwell (1915-1991) was an enormously articulate critic and theorist as well as a first-rate painter. This volume is a patchwork of his essays, lectures, interviews, book introductions, letters, epigrams and random jottings, dating from the years 1941 to 1988. Motherwell's verbal collages comprise an ongoing dialogue with the creative process. His writings illumine his formative relationship with Chilean surrealist Roberto Matta, his obsession with death and his friendships with Mark Rothko, David Smith and Joseph Cornell. Motherwell was acutely aware of the modern artist's isolation from society, and his theory of painting, which extolled free association as the artist's means of excavating his own psyche for universal archetypes, stemmed from that sense of apartness. This grab bag of ideas and impressions includes Motherwell's thoughts on Mondrian, Picasso, children's art, Kafka and Baudelaire. Terenzio is a former curator at the University of Connecticut's William Benton Museum of Art. Illustrated.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

As an artist, educator, theorist, and editor, Motherwell (1915-91) was the leading exponent of the Abstract Expressionist art movement. Terenzio ( The Prints of Robert Motherwell , Hudson Hills, 1990), formerly with the William Benton Art Museum, provides clear introductory notes to the chronologically arranged selections of essays, lectures, letters, interviews, prefaces, and exhibition catalog pieces, which date from 1941 to 1988. Educated at Stanford and Harvard, Motherwell soon moved to New York, where emigre Surrealist artists profoundly influenced his modernist views. Included here are several of his editorial prefaces from the "Documents of Modern Art" series, one volume of which ( The Dada Painters and Poets , LJ 7/89. 2d ed.) is considered the finest anthology available on Dadaism. Motherwell is so wonderfully articulate, honest, and passionate that this collection should serve as the definitive source on Abstract Expressionism. Strongly recommended for all collections.
- Joan Levin, MLS, Chicago
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 370 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (November 16, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520221796
• ISBN-13: 978-0520221796
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,043,228 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Abstract Art's Virgil, November 6, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Collected Writings of Robert Motherwell (Documents of Twentieth Century Art) (Paperback)

Motherwell was a superb writer in addition to being a painter. This anthology spans 1941-1988. It's a great read, not only for it's insights into art but also for capturing the flavour of the time. In a sense it let's you stand behind Motherwell's shoulder and peer into his thoughts and see how he viewed modern art both from a philosophical view point as well as aesthetic.

A lot of it is drawn from his public writings and speeches but a lot is fairly personal in nature, taken from his journals.

It's well annotated and useful if you're interested in the abstract movement.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars BRILLIANCE, August 4, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Collected Writings of Robert Motherwell (Documents of Twentieth Century Art) (Paperback)

Robert Motherwell, is one of the great geniuses of American art. His Paintings are broad and powerful images; more "pure" than many other of the abstract painters of his day. This is a superlative book, which lets you into Motherwells mind. Any reader will see his sharp criticism and poignant observations, those who are open will take them to heart.