Robert Motherwell Value: Top Prices Paid at Auction

At Five In The Afternoon (1971) achieved Motherwell's current auction record when it sold at Phillips New York in May 2018. This monumental canvas, standing at over 3m tall, is part of Motherwell’s renowned Elegies To The Spanish Republic series. It exemplifies the artist’s mature style, particularly his characteristic handling of scale and gesture. The title references Federico García Lorca's poem "Lament for Ignacio Sánchez Mejías," a meditation on death that deeply influenced Motherwell's work - the repeated line “at five in the afternoon” references the traditional start time of bullfights. As well as being crucial to defining the Abstract Expressionism movement, the painting holds personal significance for Motherwell. He painted it following his divorce from Helen Frankethaler, who took the original 1949 version in the settlement.

Selling at Sotheby's New York in May 2019, Elegy To The Spanish Republic No.134 (1974) is one of a limited suite of seven Elegy paintings created between 1974 and 1975 that are 244.5 by 305.4 cm in size. The work demonstrates Motherwell’s recognisable use of black ovoid and rectangular forms to create a composition that is at once formally rigorous and emotionally charged. The painting's creation during Motherwell's most sought-after period contributed to its significant result, demonstrating continued collector confidence in major works from this series.

Created between 1974-75, this entry in Motherwell's Elegy series achieved its result at Sotheby's in May 2023. The painting was acquired directly from Motherwell by Irma and Norman Braman, and kept in their private collection until 2013. Its appearance again in 2023 provided a rare opportunity for collectors to own a work the artist’s best-loved body of work - something that was reflected in its place on this list.

Elegy To The Spanish Republic No.79, created in 1962, sold out of the collection of Mrs. John L. Marion at Sotheby's New York in May 2021. This earlier example from the Elegy series demonstrates Motherwell's evolving approach to his compositions, with a greater emphasis on light-absorbing black space. The painting was created during a period of increasing critical acclaim for Motherwell, as is reflected in its rich exhibition history - from the Royal Academy of Arts, London, to the Musée d’Art Moderne, Paris.

This late Elegy painting, completed between 1983-85, sold at Phillips New York in May 2019. Despite being untitled, the painting's distinctive black forms immediately identify it as part of the Elegy series, and its strong market performance reflects collector appreciation for works that exemplify Motherwell's most recognisable style. However, unlike many of Motherwell’s Elegy paintings, this piece incorporates charcoal. Before its sale in 2019, it had remained in the private collection of M.Knoedler & Co. since being acquired from the artist in 1985.

Achieving this result at Sotheby's New York in November 2012, Elegy To The Spanish Republic No.122 (1972) marked a significant milestone in Motherwell's market - its sale set a new record for Motherwell. The previous record had been set by Elegy to the Spanish Republic (Basque Elegy) (1967), which sold for £1,477,060 in 2008. Its sale helped establish the strong market trajectory for major works from the Elegy series over the past 20 years.

Open No.103: In Big Square Blue (1969), sold at Christie's New York in November 2017, represents a significant departure from the Elegy series. This work from Motherwell's Open series features his characteristic exploration of space through a more minimal approach, with a “window” drawn in charcoal over a textured blue background. The painting demonstrates Motherwell's ability to create powerful compositions through seemingly simple means. Motherwell’s Open series began in 1967, taking inspiration from the many different meanings of the word “open” and the artist’s academic familiarity with Martin Heidegger’s concepts of “Being” and “being,” ultimately offering more contemplative, calm compositions than the tragedy and pathos of the Elegies.

This study, developed as part of Motherwell’s experimentation between 1976-79, demonstrates the careful consideration behind the Elegy works on a slightly smaller scale than the final collection pieces. It sold at Sotheby's New York in May 2019 after passing through a series of prestigious private art collections and a brief exhibition by Dominique Lévy in New York. Its place in the Blema and H. Arnold Steinberg Collection before 2019, widely recognised as one of the most important collections of Colour Field paintings to ever exist, underlines both the appeal of the work and Motherwell’s vital place in shaping some of art history’s most significant movements.

This 1955 work achieved its result at Christie's New York in November 2017. A departure from both the Elegy and Open series, Je T'Aime No.III With Loaf Of Bread (1955) engages with French culture and collage techniques and the poetry of Paul Éluard. The work combines text and abstract forms with actual objects, linking more closely to the principles of European Modernism, but still with the command of colour and space that Motherwell’s work is known for. It was originally given by Motherwell as a wedding gift to Clement Greenberg, one of the most notable art critics at the time.

Created in 1953, Spanish Elegy XIV (Palamos) sold at Sotheby's New York in May 2022. This early example from the Elegy series shows Motherwell developing the style that would define his career. It was first displayed alongside four other early Elegy paintings at the Samuel M.Kootz Gallery in 1953, just as Motherwell was establishing roots and starting a family in New York. Named after the Catalonian town of Palamós, where Motherwell spent time in the early 1950s, the work demonstrates his deep connection to Spanish culture and history, providing the origin story of his most celebrated series.