Robert Rauschenberg (1925-2008)
Biography
Robert Rauschenberg initially studied pharmacology at the University of Texas before serving as a neuropsychiatric technician in the U.S. Navy. He began his art education at the Kansas City Art Institute in 1947, followed by studies at the Académie Julian in Paris. Returning to the U.S., he studied under Josef Albers at Black Mountain College and later with John Cage and Merce Cunningham.
Rauschenberg’s career began with black paintings and expanded to his renowned Combines, blending painting and sculpture. The celebrated Combines, begun in the mid-1950s, brought real-world images and objects into the realm of abstract painting and countered sanctioned divisions between painting and sculpture. These works established the artist’s ongoing dialogue between mediums, between the handmade and the readymade, and between the gestural brushstroke and the mechanically reproduced image. Rauschenberg’s lifelong commitment to collaboration—with performers, printmakers, engineers, writers, artists, and artisans from around the world—is a further manifestation of his expansive artistic philosophy.
He became a prominent figure with works such as Automobile Tire Print (1953) and Erased de Kooning Drawing (1953). His collaborative efforts with Cage and Cunningham were pivotal, and he co-founded Experiments in Art and Technology in 1966.
Throughout the 1970s, Rauschenberg continued his innovation with large-scale projects and philanthropic efforts, including founding Change, a nonprofit for artists. His work in the 1980s and 1990s included the Rauschenberg Overseas Culture Interchange (ROCI) and new techniques like digital prints. Despite health setbacks, he remained active until his death. His extensive exhibitions include retrospectives at major institutions, such as the Guggenheim Museum and the National Gallery of Art.
Exhibition History
The exhibition history prepared by Mary Lynn Kotz for Robert Rauschenberg: A Retrospective (New York: Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, 1997) has been revised and updated by Helen Hsu, with additional research by Amanda Sroka. The online version of the exhibition history is continually updated by Foundation staff and curatorial interns.
Exhibitions have been divided into Solo and Two-Person exhibitions and Group exhibitions, and entries include exhibition catalogues and brochures, as well as selected related articles and reviews by date of publication.
Visit Exhibition History organized by the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation