Mark Rothko: Seeing Red

I finally had the opportunity to see the show Red.  It was about Mark Rothko and his commission to paint panels for the Four Seasons Restaurant in the Seagrams Building.  Ultimately, it did not work out and he cut ties.  Mark did not think it was a suitable environment for his work.

via Plum Siena

I am always fascinated by artists' back stories.  What inspired a certain work or in what period they were in their personal or professional lives?

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Mark Rothko was a Russian born, abstract expressionist painter known for his large scale color field paintings.

There are deep meanings behind these cubes, rectangles, and boxes.  Rothko hated explaining the meaning, he wanted you to FEEL the painting, not just look at it.

via The New York Times

Rothko employed a lot of different techniques to draw you into the painting.  The subtle play of opacity or the amount of luminosity.  The warm and cool variations create a layered depth.  It wasn't out of the question for Rothko to change the orientation of the painting half or three quarters of the way thru.  The goal was always to make you feel enveloped in the canvas.

Thad Hayes

Rothko felt that abstract art should be experienced in emotionally expressive terms.  "Large pictures are like dramas in which one participates in a direct way," he said.

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Rothko was a philosopher at heart.  He was very influenced by Freidrich Nietzsche and his teachings.  Always questioning the human experience, values, religion, emotions, and ideas.  There had to be a connection, an intimate experience with the painting.  Can't a painting sometimes, just be a painting?

Miles Redd via Luxury Interior Design

Mark Rothko, ill and depressed committed suicide in 1970.  Now, armed with a better understanding of the man, I absolutely appreciate the art in a different way!

via Hauteshitnyc

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