Robert Motherwell Paintings and Collages: A Catalogue Raisonné 1941 – 1991 Volume 3 - Flipbook - Page 316
c650
(k. 619). The collage elements at the
center of this work were set in 1980,
with lightly brushed brown paint surrounding them in a manner similar to
Lyrical Collage (c650) and Untitled
(c651). In 1981 Motherwell painted the
area around the collage elements with
ochre (see Arnason 1982, p. 223).
He subsequently repainted this area in
red before the work was consigned to
Knoedler & Company in October 1983.
In 1985 this collage served as the
basis for a poster Motherwell created
in conjunction with a series of
concerts called The Painter’s Music,
the Musician’s Art, performed by the
chamber music ensemble An die
Musik.
304
collages
c651
c652
c650
c651
c652
Lyrical Collage
Untitled
The Sign of the Mermaid
Alternative Title: Untitled
1980
Acrylic and pasted papers on Masonite
20 x 16 in. (50.8 x 40.6 cm)
1980
Acrylic and pasted papers on canvas
mounted on Masonite
30¼ x 24 in. (76.8 x 61 cm)
1980–82/1985
Acrylic and pasted papers on Masonite
24 x 20 in. (61 x 50.8 cm)
inscriptions
Recto, lower left: RM 80
inscriptions
Recto, lower right: RM 80
artist’s studio number
c80-2495
artist’s studio number
c80-2492
present owner
Galería Altair Collection
present owner
Private collection
provenance
Private collection; Galería Altair, 2002
provenance
Private collection, 1982
solo exhibitions
Knoedler & Company, New York,
February 1981, cat. no. 25, as Untitled.
solo exhibitions
Knoedler & Company, New York,
February 1981, cat. no. 14.
comments
The three pieces of sheet music in this
collage are from the full orchestral
scores of two works by Stravinsky: Le
sacre du printemps (on the left), and
Pétrouchka.
comments
The sheet music in this collage is from
Mozart’s Das Bandel: “Liebes Mandel,
wo ist’s Bandel?” (k. 441).
inscriptions
Recto, upper right: RM 80
Recto, upper right, incised [painted
over]: [RM]
artist’s studio number
c80-2512
present owner
Private collection
provenance
Private collection, 1986
references
Digby and Digby 1985, color illus. p. 91
(pl. 13, in early state); John Berggruen
Gallery 1986, color illus. p. 59.
comments
The composition of this collage was
first set in 1980 with the collage elements placed on a blue-painted ground.
Motherwell subsequently revised it
slightly, and signed and dated it “82.”
That version was consigned to
