Mark Rothko - Artist - Research Paper Example

?For a Jew born in the Russian town of Dvinsk, it may seem an impossible feat to conquer or even enter New York’s art scene and the Museum of Modern Art. But Marcus Rothkowitz did not just ascend the art scene or exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art, he has been setting records in renowned art auction houses with his abstract paintings of disquieting empty frames and bands in intense and contrasting hues long after he had passed away. Born in September 25, 1903 in a Russian Jew family known in their community as pharmacists, Marcus’ father was a man who highly value education and has a strong disposition on politics and social issues. (Breslin 14) Such powerful views later on had influences on Marcus’ life and art that, in effect, his paintings conveyed these compelling points of view to his audience. With a politically inclined father who sent the Marcus in a Jewish religious school, art in the young Marcus’ life was out of the question. Travel towards the man of the arts from a childhood filled with religious and political ideals started when the Rothkowitz moved to the U.S. evading the pressing political situation in Russia. (Breslin 21) Ironically, leaving Yale was the onset of Marcus’ art career particularly when he saw a sketch session during a visit at the Art Students League wherein later on he enrolled on one of the art classes. (Breslin 54) His early artworks were greatly influenced by Max Weber, a mentor at the Art Students League and a Russian immigrant like Marcus. Marcus’ early works are figurative bordering mostly on the Expressionist style of painting. His works before shifting to abstract expressionism always vary and as seen in his paintings such as the untitled painting of three nude women painted in between 1933 and 1934, his work depicting children at the doorstep in Street Scene done in 1937 and a self-portrait done in 1936 only shows that just like any artist, Marcus was searching for a specific art style to appropriate for his ideas. Among his attempts to make his presence felt in the art scene is the small show at the Museum of Art in Portland in 1933 displaying some of his paintings and works on paper and his first one man show in 1947 at the with his first one man show at the Parsons Gallery. (Breslin 232) During this timeframe, he transitioned to Surrealism and was continuously exploring other art styles. A significant change in Marcus’ art career also came with a change of name. In the 1940s, symbolism in the artist’s works paved way to an art style that freed not only the artist from the confines of the existing art styles during his era but released him from the restraints of his religious and political upbringing. Changing his name from Marcus Rothkowitz to Mark Rothko symbolized the birth of an artist liberated from the constraints of his past and the dominating art styles at that period. Rothko in the 1940s had shifted into an art style called Multiform which is “a synthesis of mutilated figures, myths and symbols painted in hazy and luminous colors.” (Breslin 232). The artist’s Multiform period served as his transition period towards a more individualistic and unfettering style for Rothko. Examples of his work during this period are The Omen of the Eagle done in 1942, Sacrifice of Iphigenia also painted in 1942 and Gethsemane which was done in 1944; all of which were filled with symbols, inspired by myths and teachings of Judaism. In these paintings, Rothko obviously endeavors to create a more personal art form by featuring familiar subjects that the artist had lived with throughout his life. From artworks bombarded with symbols and myths, Rothko arrives at a point that even he was worn-out of incorporating them on his paintings. He started eliminating concrete figures in his painting, one of his paintings that demonstrated the figureless style was Number 7 painted between 1947 and 1948. Along with eliminating concrete figures from his artworks was Rothko’s discarding of using prolix titles and used numbers instead or deliberately leaving the piece untitled. The signature style developed by Rothko was exhibited in his famous Seagram Murals which was originally intended for the Four Seasons Restaurant. Some examples of the pieces Rothko created using this style Black on Maroon, Four Darks in Red, No. 5, No. 1, No. 7 and No. 8 (which are part of the Black Form paintings). One of the paintings from the Seagram Murals series is Red on Maroon, Section 4 oil on canvas with dimensions 105 x 94 which was done in 1959 and currently in the collection of Tate Modern in London. Red on Maroon Section 4 was exhibited in Mark Rothko at the Museum of Modern Art, New York in January-March 1961; at the Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, October-November 1961; the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam in November-December 1961; Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels on January 1962; Kunsthalle, Basle on March-April 1962; Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna, Rome on April-May 1962 and at the Musee d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris on December 1962-January 1963. In this painting, a vivid red frame was painted against a lighter shade of maroon producing an effect of depth in the painting. Looking intently at the seemingly red portal, the viewer is given an illusion seeing another place past the red frame. Creating the impression of observing another place through his paintings was one of the intentions of the artist. (Breslin 4) Contrasting the intense red color against the background also helped in achieving the spatial illusion in the painting while the gradual varying of maroon shades created an implied horizon which generates the impression of a skyline in another zone. Up-close, the painting characteristically shows the jagged and fuzzy edges typical of Rothko’s artworks. Along with the color, the edges of the form contribute to the feel of depth and in the process the edges add volume to the painting. In general, the major elements in Rothko’s paintings are tone or value, color and volume. The artist’s use of color was most impressive because he had replaced well- defined shapes and figures as well as elements of perspective and tangible lines in composing his painting. The hues employed by Rothko and his palette selection shows the skilful eye of the artist in choosing the colors he uses on his paintings to achieve the desired effect. Colors are experimented with by changing the tone or value of the colors. Varying tones of the colors produce a different outcome for each painting thus modifying the mood for each piece. This is evident in the two paintings of Black on Maroon series. Both paintings basically feature a square with two parallel rectangles the difference is tone of the colors of the squares on each painting. One painting shows a blue square of dark value while the other is of a lighter value. The painting with the lighter value shows an impression of a degenerating version of the subject in the other painting which in comparison seems to vibrate and float from the canvas. The lighter valued object appears to dissolve into the background. Volume for these paintings are affected by the change in tone as the color becomes lighter in tone it gives the impression of reduction in volume. The piece Red on Maroon Section 4 can be compared to the piece Mural 1. Mural 1 shows a similar subject in Red on Maroon Section 4 but was painted in an orange hue against a darker maroon background. The toned down color also shows an illusionary effect that the object dissolves into the background or is engulfed by the illusory place in the painting. In contrast, Red on Maroon Section 4 appears to show an energetic resistance of the red object to be consumed by the background. As an artist, Mark Rothko and his works is an excellent choice for an art analysis because he had commendably expressed his ideas and emotions without using well-defined figures but mainly used colors to also invoke feelings from the viewers of his paintings as well as set an atmosphere in places where his artworks are placed. Aside from finding an effective way to transmit his deepest and lingering thoughts rooting from his childhood onto the canvas, he had also formulated his own style which few artists achieve due to the influences of conventional art styles. Another remarkable quality of Rothko’s art is the ability of the artist to narrate his story through his paintings. From social issues on rich people contrasted with the indigents during his time, to the struggles he had encountered as an emerging artist, his travel from Russia to a land where he cannot understand a single word, to his unspoken disdain on entering the religious school as a child and to a childhood marred by the discrimination against Jews. The artist has achieved freedom from his past and from the limiting art community during his time through his paintings not because he had created another place for himself but because he was finally released from the distressing thoughts in his mind. CITED WORKS Breslin, James. Mark Rothko: a biography. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1993. Print. Mark Rothko. National Gallery of Art, Washington. 27 January 2011. Web. www.nga.gov/feature/rothko/rothkosplash.shtm Rothko, Mark. Black on Maroon. 1958. Tate Modern, London. Room 4: Material History. Web. 27 January 2011. www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/markrothko/roomguide/room4.shtm Rothko, Mark. Black on Maroon. 1958. Tate Modern, London. Room 3: The Seagram murals. Web. 27 January 2011. www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/markrothko/roomguide/room3.shtm Rothko, Mark. Red on Maroon Section 4. 1959. Tate Modern, London. Mark Rothko. Web. 27 January 2011. www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ViewWork?workid=12968&tabview=text Read More