A la pintura: White 14-15

Robert Motherwells A la pintura: White 14-15 from 1968-71, published in 1972, is an orange watercolor on white wove paper that belongs to the artists extended series of works inspired by Rafael Albertis poem A la pintura (To Painting), a tribute to the art of painting that provided Motherwell with a literary framework for his own exploration of the relationship between painting and poetry. Motherwell, who was the youngest of the Abstract Expressionists and the most intellectually engaged member of the group, produced the A la pintura series over a period of several years, creating paintings, drawings, and prints that explore the themes of Albertis poem through color, form, and gesture rather than through illustration. The white of the title, whether it refers to the color that dominates the composition or to the white paper that provides the ground, connects this work to Motherwells lifelong engagement with the color white as the ground of painting and the space in which thought becomes visible. The orange watercolor, applied in broad, gestural strokes that record the movement of the artists hand, creates a contrast with the white ground that is simultaneously chromatic and conceptual, a contrast between presence and absence, color and non-color, gesture and ground. The years 1968-71 bracket the period when Motherwell was producing some of his most accomplished works on paper, and the A la pintura series represents a significant development in his approach to color and gesture.

Motherwells A la pintura series is one of the most significant extended projects in the history of Abstract Expressionism, and White 14-15 demonstrates his ability to translate literary themes into abstract visual terms. The series influenced the development of artist-book collaborations and the broader tradition of art engaged with poetry.

An orange watercolor from 1968-71 by Motherwell from his A la pintura series inspired by Albertis poem, exploring the relationship between painting and poetry through the contrast of orange gesture and white ground in an extended meditation on color, presence, and thought becoming visible.