Prepared in cooperation with the Dedalus Foundation, this survey of Motherwell's earlier works includes his very first acknowledged painting, La Belle Mexicaine, and others from amongst his very earliest paintings.  Luke Diiorio's introduction discusses the tremendous influence Motherwell still exerts on contemporary artists:  "Motherwell paved the way, as much or more so than any other artist of his era, for today's artists to employ spontaneity and improvisation within their practice, wholeheartedly and without the slightest hesitation."  Three seminal Motherwell essays from the 1950s are also reprinted, as well as rarely-seen ephemera from the artist's early career, including correspondence with such peers as Baziotes and Cornell, and documentation of Motherwell's critical role in the academic establishment of the time.