WATTS INDEXThe canonical database of visual culture

Artists›Robert Blackburn

Robert Blackburn

Artist

WA-00031768

Figuration

Representation

None documented

Institutional Exhibitions

Works in Collection

Assets Indexed

Authority-backed Facts

Publications Referenced

80%

Profile Completeness

Cultural Positioning

Influence Graph

No influence edges encoded yet.

Authority Records (2)

WikidataQ7342130

MoMA

Field Verification (1 fields)

1 cross-verified · 0 single-source

BiographyMoMA· 93%✓

Source Registry (1)

MoMA bulk 2026-05-04https://www.moma.org/artists/20080
Tier 1 · Institutional92%

About

Why this artist matters now

Robert Blackburn was an American printmaker and educator whose practice centered on lithography and intaglio processes. Born in 1920, he became a central figure in postwar American printmaking, known for his technical mastery and commitment to making advanced printmaking techniques accessible to artists of all backgrounds. He founded the Printmaking Workshop in New York, an influential teaching institution dedicated to the democratic practice of the medium. Blackburn's own prints explored abstraction and figuration with equal facility, establishing him as both a significant maker and a catalyst for the broader expansion of printmaking in American art.

Source: Moma Bulk 2026 05 04 · Trust score: 92% · Updated 27d ago

Graph relationships

Taste overlap and adjacency

Movement

Figuration

Medium

—

Related Artists

12 in graph

Institutional

Museum Collections

Cleveland Museum of Art Museum of Modern ArtNew York

Canonical record

Artworks (12)

WattsOS

False Start I

1962 · Lithograph in 11 colors on Rives BFK paper (wove)

Image: 45.1 x 35 cm (17 3/4 x 13 3/4 in.); Sheet: 64.8 x 48.9 cm (25 1/2 x 19 1/4 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Heavy Forms

1962 · Lithograph

15 3/4 x 19 1/2" (40 x 49.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

WattsOS

Quiet Instrument

1960 · Color lithograph

Sheet: 46.2 x 38 cm (18 3/16 x 14 15/16 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Faux Pas

1960 · Lithograph

composition (irreg.): 22 1/4 × 16 3/4" (56.5 × 42.5 cm); page: 28 1/2 × 22 1/4" (72.4 × 56.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Untitled

1960 · Lithograph

composition: 7 13/16 × 6 1/8" (19.8 × 15.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

WattsOS

Interior

1958 · Color lithograph

Sheet: 54.5 x 38 cm (21 7/16 x 14 15/16 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Heavy Forms (Pink)

1958 · Lithograph

composition: 15 13/16 × 19 5/8" (40.2 × 49.8 cm)

Cleveland Museum of Art

WattsOS

The Table

1950 · Etching

18 5/16 × 15 3/8 in. (46.5 × 39 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

WattsOS

We Have Been Believers

1949 · lithograph

Sheet: 40.5 x 30.2 cm (15 15/16 x 11 7/8 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

WattsOS

Café Scene

1939 · Lithograph

15 3/8 × 8 15/16 in. (39.1 × 22.7 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

WattsOS

People in a Boat

1938 · Lithograph

Image: 11 1/8 × 15 3/4 in. (28.3 × 40 cm) 15 1/4 × 19 3/4 in. (38.7 × 50.2 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

View all 12 artworks →

Artwork sources (3)

12 published of 16 catalogued · 8 with image

Cleveland Museum of Art
5 published
MoMA
4 publishedof 8 catalogued8 img
The Met
3 published

Per-Artwork Provenance Chains (top 5)

5 entries · 1 sources

We Have Been Believers
1949 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Frederick Douglass
1951 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Quiet Instrument
1960 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
False Start I
1962 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Interior
1958 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number

Record

Images

Artsy

Art Institute of Chicago

Relationships

Movements1

Figuration

Collections2

Cleveland Museum of Art Museum of Modern Art

Institutional

Representation & Collections

In collection

Cleveland Museum of Art

In collection

Museum of Modern Art

New York, US

Record

Exhibitions and timeline

No exhibitions or timeline entries yet