Robert Motherwell was an American abstract impressionist painter, printmaker and editor. He was known for his series of abstract paintings and prints which touched on political, philosophical and literary themes. Between 1932 and 1937, Motherwell briefly studied painting at California School of Fine Arts, San Francisco and received a BA in philosophy from Stanford University. In 1940, Motherwell moved to New York to study at Columbia University. In 1942 Motherwell began to exhibit his work in New York and in 1944 he had his first one-man show at Peggy Guggenheim's "Art of This Century" gallery.