The Writings of Robert Motherwell (Documents of Twentieth-Century Art)

A very very nice book. The content is extraordinary. If you like contemporary art theory and history I truly recommend.

Très belle livre - indispensable pour comprendre la peinture abstraite. Motherwell était philosophe par éducation et ses pensées sur la peinture sont fascinantes. Un must sur l'art moderne. Seule petit bis - il n'y a pas d'illustrations en couleur.

I am often asked how I paint everyday. How do I start and keep my enthusiasm up. My usual answer is, "Just show up." It sounds like a smart-alecky answer, but actually it couldn't more more true. Woody Allen said "90% of life is just showing up." There are some days I feel uninspired, all painted-out, and just flat out tired. I drag myself to the studio and start by just looking around. I'll have my coffee, read a book, write in my sketchbook - something to perk my interest up a bit. Invariably it happens and I get excited about a new project or a new technique I've been wanting to try. Sometimes all it takes is seeing a painting that I haven't finished yet. So I begin my daily warmup paintings, all fired up!My inspiration comes from surprising sources. Henry Miller, the author, is the one that immediately comes to mind. Did you know he doodled in watercolor everyday before taking his meals while living in Big Sur? His library is on the Big Sur coast. Perusing his notes, I read that he painted for fifteen minutes everyday before dinner. He was lonely and it was a quiet place to be, so he painted and wrote daily.An out of print book of his doodles is a rare and welcomed find - "Paint as you Like and Die Happy." Henry Miller not only fills the pages with his whimsical style of calligraphy and drawings... he also writes about his time painting these little gems everyday.Robert Motherwell also painted everyday. Most importantly he painted on a ream (500 sheets) of white paper daily as a warmup exercise using large Sumi inked brushes. Think about that! 500 sheets, quickly painted with black marks and lines - everyday. He coined the phrase "Automatism." In fact, he felt that painting everyday became so natural (like tying your shoe) that while painting, you are thinking about what you are doing. It becomes automatic! ''This can only come to you when you paint many, many paintings - everyday. Even the great golfer, Arnold Palmer said, "It's a funny thing, the more I practice the luckier I get."Paint, at least fifteen minutes everyday![...]

This is an extensive (some might argue "exhaustive") array of Motherwell's writings, including fully composed articles down to 2 paragraph notes. Motherwell was a significant thinker among the painting forces of that era, and we learn much from his contemplative and reflective musings on Art. Artists looking for perspective on the act of painting as well as thinking about painting are well served by this book.

One of the AbEx's most articulate members. I found it interesting that at the beginning of his published writings and fresh from collegiate philosophy work he seemed to be a bit sophmoric - which I found endearing. I mean were't we all. The writing became more clear as he aged. As a fan of his work I also became a fan of the man.