AWARENESS: Mark Rothko (1903-1970)

Mark Rothko

Mark Rothko, Archaic Idol, 1945, Ink and gouache on paper, 21 7/8 x 30" (55.6 x 76.2 cm), MoMA.

Mark Rothko, Untitled, 1968, Synthetic polymer paint on paper, 17 7/8 x 23 7/8" (45.4 x 60.8 cm), MoMA.

Perhaps one of the most recognizable and well-known Abstract Expressionists is Mark Rothko. Born in Latvia, Rothko emigrated to the United States at a young age, and changed his name from Rothkowitz to Rothko. Midway through his education at Yale, Rothko abandoned his interests in Law and Engineering, and instead chose to pursue art. After Yale, Rothko moved to New York, where he studied for a time under Max Weber, one of the few professors who liked and knew about European Modernism. Weber's influence, in addition to that of Picasso and Cezanne, are clearly visible in Rothko's early work. Rothko's work continued to evolve through the 1930s and '40s as he worked closely with Gottlieb, and eventually began to adopt surrealist aspects. Beginning in the late '40s, Rothko produced his series that he is most famous for. Described as "frontal, luminous rectangles seeming to hover on the canvas surface," Rothko's new work was quickly both praised and criticized. His work gained such popularity, however, that he began to get a stream of commissions - perhaps the most famous of which came from the Four Seasons Restaurant in 1958.
Mark Rothko once said: “I’m interested only in expressing basic human emotions—tragedy, ecstasy, doom, and so on... and the fact that a lot of people break down and cry when confronted with my pictures shows that I can communicate those basic human emotions….If you…are moved only by their color relationships, then you miss the point.” While much of the art's appeal lies in the simple colors that Rothko uses, its an oversimplification of his work to claim thats what his painting deal with. Rothko was not just an expert at the use of colors, he was also skilled in his ability to represent space and depth. Despite the lack of anything recognizable in his paintings, the late works by Rothko depict and communicate an immense space and depth to the viewer. This is largely due to Rothko's process, using thin paints to create translucent stains, and then building up the layers to create greater depth and color.
Here are a couple short articles to read to better understand Rothko's art:
National Gallery Introduction
National Gallery: Classic Paintings and Technique
​The three videos below are short, so watch all of them.

Talking about Rothko's life and goals for his art.

In depth about one particular painting:

Rothko's techniques in action:

Questions:

1. What techniques did Rothko use in his recognizable paintings? What techniques interest you, and how can you see yourself using them in the Abstract Expressionist project?
2. What inspired or influenced Rothko's art, and how are those inspirations seen in his art? How did his inspiration and content compare to other artists of the time?
   
3. Do you like/understand/appreciate Rothko's art? Why or why not?

Here are the sources I used and some other NON-MANDATORY materials - if you're interested. The video is a slideshow of about 300 of Rothko's works.
http://www.markrothko.org
https://www.moma.org
https://www.phillipscollection.org
https://www.guggenheim.org
https://www.moma.org