Mark Rothko, born Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz in 1903 in Dvinsk, Russia (now Daugavpils, Latvia), was a prominent American abstract expressionist painter known for his large-scale color field paintings. Immigrating to the United States in 1913, he settled in Portland, Oregon, before moving to New York City in the 1920s to pursue art. Initially influenced by Surrealism and expressionism, Rothko’s style evolved towards abstraction.

In the 1940s and 1950s, Rothko developed his signature style characterized by expansive blocks of vibrant color. These paintings, often large in scale, aimed to evoke emotional and spiritual depth, exploring themes of tragedy and the human condition. Rothko meticulously controlled every aspect of his work, from color choice to canvas size, to create immersive, meditative experiences for viewers.

Despite artistic success, Rothko battled depression throughout his life, ultimately taking his own life in 1970. However, his legacy endures through his profound impact on abstract art. His paintings, with their emotive power and immersive quality, continue to captivate audiences, inviting contemplation and introspection.

Rothko’s contribution to art lies in his ability to transcend the confines of representation, instead focusing on the evocative potential of color and form to convey profound emotional and spiritual truths. Today, his work remains highly regarded and influential, inspiring generations of artists and admirers with its timeless exploration of the human experience through abstract expression.

Mark Rothko Quotes

01. “Silence is so accurate.”
― Mark Rothko

02. “I’m not an abstractionist. I’m not interested in the relationship of color or form or anything else. I’m interested only in expressing basic human emotions: tragedy, ecstasy, doom, and so on.”
― Mark Rothko

03. “When I was a younger man, art was a lonely thing. No galleries, no collectors, no critics, no money. Yet, it was a golden age, for we all had nothing to lose and a vision to gain. Today it is not quite the same. It is a time of tons of verbiage, activity, consumption. Which condition is better for the world at large I shall not venture to discuss. But I do know, that many of those who are driven to this life are desperately searching for those pockets of silence where we can root and grow. We must all hope we find them.”
― Mark Rothko

04. “It is really a matter of ending this silence and solitude, of breathing and stretching one’s arms again.”
― Mark Rothko

05. “You’ve got sadness in you, I’ve got sadness in me – and my works of art are places where the two sadnesses can meet, and therefore both of us need to feel less sad.”
― Mark Rothko

06. “A picture lives by companionship, expanding and quickening in the eyes of the sensitive observer. It dies by the same token. It is therefore risky to send it out into the world. How often it must be impaired by the eyes of the unfeeling and the cruelty of the impotent.”
― Mark Rothko

07. “The romantics were prompted to seek exotic subjects and to travel to far off places. They failed to realize that, though the transcendental must involve the strange and unfamiliar, not everything strange or unfamiliar is transcendental.”
― Mark Rothko

08. “Pictures must be miraculous.”
― Mark Rothko

09. “A painting is not a picture of an experience, but is the experience.”
― Mark Rothko

10. “For, while the authority of the doctor or plumber is never questioned, everyone deems himself a good judge and an adequate arbiter of what a work of art should be and how it should be done.”
― Mark Rothko

11. “We thus see the artist performing a dual function: first, furthering the integrity of the process of self-expression in the language of art; and secondly, protecting the organic continuity of art in relation to its own laws. For like any organic substance, art must always be in a state of flux, the tempo being slow or fast. But it must move.”
― Mark Rothko

12. “If you are only moved by color relationships, you are missing the point. I am interested in expressing the big emotions – tragedy, ecstasy, doom.”
― Mark Rothko

13. “Silence is so accurate”
― Mark Rothko

14. “the constant repetition of falsehood is more convincing than the demonstration of truth.”
― Mark Rothko

15. “I would like to say to those who think of my pictures as serene, whether in friendship or mere observation, that I have imprisoned the most utter violence in every inch of their surface.”
― Mark Rothko

16. “Art to me is an anecdote of the spirit.”
― Mark Rothko