Robert Rauschenberg, Barge, 1962–63. Oil and silkscreen ink on canvas, (6 feet 8 1/4 in x 32 feet 2 inches). (Courtesy: Guggenheim Museum).

“I want paintings to be reflections of life, and life can’t be stopped.” With this statement, Robert Rauschenberg articulated the restless, generative force at the core of his practice. Now, on the centennial of his birth,  the Guggenheim Museum honors that legacy with a sweeping exhibition on view through May 3, 2026.

Drawing on the museum’s permanent collection and key loans from the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, the exhibition revisits the artist’s singular trajectory—a career defined by curiosity, innovation, and a radical openness to new materials and processes. The Guggenheim’s presentation forms part of a year-long global celebration of Rauschenberg’s centenary, reaffirming his place at the center of postwar art.

At the heart of the exhibition is Barge (1962–63), the monumental silkscreen painting completed within a single 24-hour period. The largest work in the Silkscreen Paintings series—a body of nearly 80 works produced between 1962 and 1964—Barge was first acquired for the Guggenheim’s landmark 1997–98 retrospective and now returns to New York after a quarter century. Nearby, Untitled (1963) stands as an early experiment in vibrant color and layered imagery. A photograph of choreographer Merce Cunningham—Rauschenberg’s close friend and collaborator—anchors the composition, testifying to the artist’s deep engagement with performance, collaboration, and contemporary culture. At the time, works such as these aligned him with contemporaries like Andy Warhol, signaling a shared commitment to collapsing the boundaries between art and life.

Robert Rauschenberg, Untitled, 1963. Oil, silkscreened ink, metal, and plastic on canvas. 82 x 48 x 6 1/4 inches. (Courtesy: Guggenheim Museum).

Another highlight,  Untitled (Red Painting) (ca. 1953–54), exemplifies Rauschenberg’s early interest in surface, structure, and the interplay between image and material. Layers of red paint applied over a collage of newspaper create a charged, tactile field—one that resists easy categorization. His ongoing experiments with transfer drawings, in which he applied solvents such as lighter fluid to printed images and burnished their reverse, chart the evolution of his technical language from the 1950s through the 1980s. Works on paper loaned from the Rauschenberg Foundation reveal this continual metamorphosis of method and meaning.

It is fitting that this centennial celebration unfolds at the Guggenheim—a museum that has accompanied Rauschenberg’s artistic journey for over six decades. His work first appeared here in 1961, followed by inclusion in Six Painters and the Object (1963), the first major Pop Art exhibition in a New York museum. The institution went on to mount his most comprehensive retrospective in 1997, a defining moment that subsequently traveled the world.

“Robert Rauschenberg’s restless innovation and enduring exploration of materials and techniques have long resonated with the Guggenheim’s own commitment to redefining artistic boundaries.  Life Can’t Be Stopped not only commemorates his centennial but also deepens our ongoing dialogue with the work of an artist whose influence on contemporary art remains immeasurable,” notes Joan Young, Senior Director, Curatorial Affairs.

Courtney J. Martin, Executive Director of the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, underscores this relationship: “Robert Rauschenberg’s centennial is not only a moment to honor his legacy, but also a call to renew our commitment to the radical curiosity and spirit of collaboration that defined his life and work. The Guggenheim has been a vital partner in sustaining that legacy. By reexamining seminal works from their collection and ours, this exhibition underscores the enduring power of Rauschenberg’s belief that art should remain in constant motion, bridging disciplines, communities, and ideas.”

Rauschenberg emerged in 1950s New York as part of a generation determined to dismantle conventional artistic hierarchies. His use of silkscreen techniques in painting, combined with everyday imagery and materials, propelled him to international prominence. In 1964, he became one of the few American artists to win the Grand Prize for Painting at the Venice Biennale—an achievement that announced his impact on the global stage. Soon after, he turned to interdisciplinary work, integrating dance, performance, and technology, thereby reshaping the trajectory of postwar art.

Decades later, his vision continues to reverberate. Rauschenberg’s conviction that “life can’t be stopped” was not just a declaration—it was an artistic method, a way of keeping the world in motion.