Rothko (Paperback)

by Mark Rothko (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Mark Rothko (1903-70) is widely seen as one of the greatest painters of the 20th century and was a leading figure in the Abstract Expressionist movement. In the late 1960s, he donated nine large-scale paintings to Tate on the condition that henceforward these would be shown as a unified immersive environment never to be mixed with work by other artists. The Rothko Room in its various incarnations has been one of the highlights of Tate's collection for the past thirty-five years.As is well known, the paintings in The Rothko Room formed part of a larger series known as The Seagram Murals. These were originally intended for the Four Seasons restaurant in the Seagram Building in Manhattan, a commission from which Rothko famously withdrew, irritated, according to legend, that his paintings would be lowered to the status of wallpaper for rich diners. So far the question has never been asked: if the restaurant had space for 10 paintings, why did Rothko paint 30 in the series?For the first time, the paintings from The Rothko Room are examined together with others from the series, from Kawamura Memorial Art museum, the National Gallery of Art, Washington, the Rothko Estate and other private collections. New research by an international team of experts will reveal previously unknown detail about their manufacture. They will be additionally re-contextualised by being placed alongside large-scale gouaches from the Rothko family collection and the Black on Grey paintings from the late 1960s, which continue to challenge the standard presentation of Rothko as a painter focused primarily on the effect of colour. Liberated from the straight-jacket of their legendary status, the Seagram paintings can finally be seen as works in their own right, central to a reconsideration of Rothko's late career, which in the Black on Grey paintings, his final series and the first to be created without a commission, was moving towards a tougher, more contemporary sensibility.

About the Author

Achim Borchardt-Hume is curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at Tate Modern in London.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Tate Publishing (CA) (January 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 185437737X
• ISBN-13: 978-1854377371
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.7 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,257,988 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars A high-quality (though not groundbreaking) publication, April 16, 2009

By	Claude Reich (Florianopolis, Brazil and Paris, France) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Rothko (Hardcover)

The catalogue for last year's blockbuster show at the Tate Gallery in London, this book focuses on Rothko's late series (the Seagram Murals, the late black on gray paintings). It is therefore not a complete retrospective of the artist's career (at least four other books are available if you are looking for a broader study of his art), but it nevertheless is a high-quality publication with many first-rate illustrations of Rothko's darkest and most austere works. Interesting essays by leading authorities on the artist (especially by David Anfam, the author of the widely praised catalogue raisonné of Rothko's paintings) explain the significance of this shift to a darker palette, the importance of the relationship between the paintings and the space they were meant to be hung in, the artist's mood and psyche during the 1960's, his uneasiness with success and money, or his rejection of a purely decorative and colorful art.

On the whole a valuable addition to the albeit extensive literature on the artist. Do not expect any breakthrough study though, most of the ideas that appear in these essays having already been expressed in earlier publications (by Diane Waldman, Jeffrey Weiss and, of course, David Anfam)with the exception of the chapter dealing with the pigments and components used by the artist, with very interesting photographs of the different layers of paint.