Colors of Rothko..

Rothko.. Rothko.. Marcus Rothowitz...Mark Rothko.. His paintings look so bleak in spite of all the colors. It is hard to believe that such colors came from an artist who was suffering from depression and who finally commited suicide by bleeding his wrist.

These colors invoke horror in me. Yet, they beckon silently to gaze at them and have a peek. The temptation seems irresistable.

Rothko always avoided discussion on his works as he thought it would interfere with the experience the viewer has with the painting when viewing with an open mind. He wanted the painting to speak for itself.

This painting titled 'Underground fantasy' depicts the subway scene as grim and gloomy. It was painted befor Rothko developed his trademark 'multiform' painting style.
Underground Fantasy , 1940









A newspaper reading man divides the canvas. Individuals are elongated and resemble a lot like the pillars. Their postures and expression depict a detachment and loneliness in their well dressed attire. What does Rothko tell us through this painting? Is he depicting the urban alienation?
This painting reminds me of the surreal sculptures of elongated melting men created in the post war psyche by Alberto Giacometti.

Alberto Giacometti, La forêt, 1950