Mark Rothko was a Russian born artist famous for his abstract expressionist style of painting. Mark Rothko was born in Dvinsk, Vitebsk, Russian Empire in the year 1903. His father was a pharmacist and although his family was Jewish, Rothko was the only child to attend the traditional Hebrew school called a cheder.
Rothko enjoyed emphasizing color in his work. Rothko stated that traditional painters began with a drawing, he began with color first.
The artist emigrated to the United States from Russia in 1913. His father was worried that he sons may be drafted into the army, and also for the anti Jewish sentiment that was taking over Russia at that time.
The artist attended Yale University but didn’t feel at ease at the college. Rothko thought that the environment was too elitist and racist for him so he quit in his second year.
In this clip we visit a show featuring Mark Rothko with our artistic amigo the great James Kalm:
Rothko was working in the garment district and visited the Art Student’s League of New York. This inspired him to enroll in the New York School of Design. Two influences for Rothko were Max Weber and Arshille Gorky.
Below a montage of works by Mark Rothko:
Mark Rothko passed away at the age of 66 in the year 1970.
Price range information: Works range from $100,000 for a print to more than $86 million for an original acrylic painting. Below we view Rotko’s work Orange, Red, Yellow that set a record for the artist in 2012:
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