This book traces an arc from the early figurative works by the great American painter to his famous late-phase color field paintings. The survey also factors in the profound effects of Rothko’s four trips to Europe between 1950 and 1966, when the artist went to Paris and Venice, Arezzo, Siena, Rome and Florence, where he saw Michelangelo’s Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana and the frescoes by Fra Angelico. The illustrated volume not only shows us how Rothko learned from the techniques of the Old Masters, but also contains selections from Rothko’s extensive writings about art history, mythology, the drama of human existence, and explanations of his concept of experiential art. Comparing and contrasting Rothko’s theories with his development as an artist, the publication supplies us with new ways to interpret some of his greatest paintings.

Mark Rothko, born Marcus Rotkovich (1903, Dwinsk, Latvia–1970, New York), was one of the twentieth century’s most prominent painters. He became famous as one of the main figures of Abstract Expressionism and a pioneer of color field painting.