A global celebration marks the centennial of Robert Rauschenberg's birth on October 22, 1925, with a bumper program of exhibitions at major museums including the Museum of the City of New York, the Guggenheim in New York, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Des Moines Art Center, the Menil in Houston, Museum Ludwig in Cologne, and M+ in Hong Kong. The article highlights eight key facts about Rauschenberg's life and career, from his early use of the G.I. Bill to study art in Paris and at Black Mountain College, to his rebellion against teacher Josef Albers, and his invention of the "Combines"—radical painting-sculpture hybrids that broke with Abstract Expressionism and predicted Pop Art.
Rauschenberg's centennial matters because he is often cited as the very first postmodern artist, whose relentless experimentation across materials—from metal and glass to silkscreen and fabric—radically reinvented modernist influences and reshaped American art. His influence remains pervasive in contemporary art, and the global scope of the centennial exhibitions—spanning the U.S., Europe, and Asia—underscores his enduring legacy as a transformative figure who bridged Dada, Abstract Expressionism, and Pop Art while constantly pursuing the new.