LONDON.- Tate and the National Galleries of Scotland today announced that the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation has donated three of the artist’s renowned sculptures to ARTIST ROOMS. Jointly shared by Tate and the National Galleries of Scotland, the ARTIST ROOMS collection is used to stage free touring exhibitions at museums and galleries across the UK. The works will initially be shown at Tate Modern this September as part of a large-scale new display devoted to this foundational figure in the history of early contemporary art, extending the centennial celebrations marking 100 years since the artist’s birth.
One of the most influential American artists of the post-war era, Robert Rauschenberg blurred the boundary between art and life. He often integrated everyday objects into his work, including Coca-Cola signs, ironing boards and newspaper clippings. The three sculptures being donated to ARTIST ROOMS are part of a series he called Gluts: G-I Glut 1986, Rasputin's Revenge Early Winter Glut 1987, and Mobile Cluster Glut (Neapolitan) 1987. Made from salvaged scrap metal and taking their inspiration from the abandoned gas stations, cars and machinery that dotted the Texan landscape in the wake of the 1980s oil surplus, Rauschenberg saw these sculptures as a stark warning about consumer culture. He commented ‘It’s a time of glut. Greed is rampant. I’m just trying to expose it, trying to wake people up.’
The three Gluts generously donated by the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation will be shown at Tate Modern in a new free display from 20 September 2026 to the end of 2027. This solo show will bring together over 25 works from across the artist’s career, including paintings, sculptures, prints, and his unique kinetic and light works, drawing from Tate’s collection and loans from the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation. The display will also feature rarely screened film documentation of Rauschenberg’s performances and collaborations with celebrated choreographers Merce Cunningham and Trisha Brown. It builds on Tate’s enduring relationship with the artist, from the first acquisition of a silkscreen painting in 1969 to the major retrospective staged in 2016.
Gregor Muir, Tate’s Director of Collection, said “We are delighted that the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation has chosen to celebrate the artist’s centennial with this extraordinary gift of three sculptures of considerable importance. Works in the ARTIST ROOMS collection are not only shown in Tate and the National Galleries of Scotland’s own galleries – as we will be doing at Tate Modern this autumn – but they are also made available to art organisations across the UK, reaching the widest possible audience for years to come.”
Venda Pollock, Director of Collections & Research at the National Galleries of Scotland, said “Rauschenberg’s Gluts are powerful reflections on consumption, industry and change, and they continue to resonate with striking relevance today. We are deeply grateful to the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation for this gift of these three exceptional sculptures. These works will be seen in ARTIST ROOMS exhibitions right across the country, ensuring that Rauschenberg’s bold, questioning spirit continues to inspire new generations. They will strengthen the ARTIST ROOMS collection and enrich our ability to share the work of one of the most renowned post-war artists.”
Courtney J. Martin, Executive Director of the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, commented “The Robert Rauschenberg Foundation was founded to extend the artist's generosity beyond his lifetime. This gift will augment Tate’s existing holdings of his work to broaden the understanding of his practice. These three Gluts, forged from the remnants of a particular moment, ask us to look squarely at what we value and what we discard. Collaboration and intentionality were central to the artist’s ethos. As we mark the centennial of his birth, we are honoured to partner with Tate and the National Galleries of Scotland through ARTIST ROOMS with these shared ideals. These coming months will further our remit of seeking new audiences with which to share his art and ideas across the world.”
Since Tate and the National Galleries of Scotland established the shared ARTIST ROOMS collection in 2008, it has been used to stage 230 exhibitions at nearly 100 venues across the UK, attracting over 62 million visitors in total. Rauschenberg is one of several new artists to join the programme in recent years: A large installation by Helen Chadwick, donated to Tate through the D.Daskalopoulos Collection Gift in 2023, will feature in a solo show at Oriel y Parc in Pembrokeshire (opening 11 July 2026) before touring to The Wilson in Cheltenham next year. A major film work by Isaac Julien, acquired through the Artist Rooms Foundation in 2024 thanks to the generosity of Agnes Gund, will be shown at Perth Museum (opening 9 October 2026) before travelling to Belfast and Bristol next year.
This summer will also see two simultaneous ARTIST ROOMS displays devoted to photographer Diane Arbus, one at Tate Modern in London (opening 13 July 2026) and one at the National Galleries Scotland: Modern One in Edinburgh (open now). Other highlights of this year’s ARTIST ROOMS programme across the UK include Andy Warhol at Wolverhampton Art Gallery (until 4 October 2026) and Gilbert & George at The Atkinson in Southport (opening 7 November 2026). This will be followed next year by Roy Lichtenstein at Hay Castle in Hay-on-Wye, celebrating the gift of a group of screenprints donated to ARTIST ROOMS by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation in 2025.
