Editing Mark Rothko (section)

{{Short description|Abstract painter (1903–1970)}}
{{redirect|Rothko}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2023}}
{{Use American English|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox artist
| name             = Mark Rothko
| image            = File:Consuelo Kanaga, Mark Rothko, Yorktown Heights, ca. 1949.jpg
| caption          = ''Mark Rothko, Yorktown Heights'', {{circa|1949}}. [[Brooklyn Museum]], by [[Consuelo Kanaga]].
| birth_name       = Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz
| birth_date       = {{birth date|mf=yes|1903|9|25}}
| birth_place      = [[Dvinsk]], [[Russian Empire]]<br />(now [[Daugavpils]], Latvia)
| death_date       = {{death date and age|mf=yes|1970|2|25|1903|9|25}}
| death_place      = New York City, U.S.
| nationality      = {{Plainlist|
* [[Russian Empire]]
* American (from 1938)
}}
| field            = Painting
| spouse           = {{unbulleted list|{{marriage|Edith Sachar|1932|1943|reason=divorced}}|{{marriage|Mary Alice "Mell" Beistle|1944|<!-- Omission per Template:Marriage instructions -->}}}}
| training         = 
| alma_mater       = [[Yale University]]
| movement         = [[Abstract expressionism]], [[color field]]
| works            = 
| patrons          = [[Peggy Guggenheim]], [[John de Menil]], [[Dominique de Menil]]
| influenced by    = 
| influenced       = 
| awards           = 
| children         = 2<ref name="Guardian 2008"/>
}}

'''Mark Rothko''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|r|ɒ|θ|k|oʊ|audio=en-us-Rothko.ogg}} {{Respell|ROTH|koh}}; '''Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz''' until 1940; September 25, 1903{{spaced ndash}}February 25, 1970) was an American [[abstract art|abstract]] painter. He is best known for his [[color field]] paintings that depicted irregular and [[painterly]] rectangular regions of color, which he produced from 1949 to 1970. Although Rothko did not personally subscribe to any one school, he is associated with the American [[abstract expressionism]] movement of modern art.

Born to a [[Jews|Jewish]] family in [[Daugavpils]], [[Latvia]], then part of the [[Russian Empire]], Rothko emigrated with his parents and siblings to the United States, arriving at [[Ellis Island]] in late 1913 and originally settling in [[Portland, Oregon]]. He moved to [[New York City]] in 1923 where his youthful period of artistic production dealt primarily with urban scenery. In response to [[World War II]], Rothko's art entered a transitional phase during the 1940s, where he experimented with mythological themes and [[Surrealism]] to express tragedy. Toward the end of the decade, Rothko painted canvases with regions of pure color which he further abstracted into rectangular color forms, the idiom he would use for the rest of his life.

In his later career, Rothko executed several canvases for three different mural projects. The [[Seagram murals]] were to have decorated the [[Four Seasons Restaurant]] in the [[Seagram Building]], but Rothko eventually grew disgusted with the idea that his paintings would be decorative objects for wealthy diners and refunded the lucrative commission, donating the paintings to museums including the [[Tate Gallery]]. The Harvard Mural series was donated to a dining room in [[Harvard]]'s Holyoke Center (now [[Smith Campus Center]]); their colors faded badly over time due to Rothko's use of the pigment [[History of red|lithol red]] together with regular sunlight exposure. The Harvard series has since been [[Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage|restored]] using a special lighting technique.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.architectmagazine.com/technology/lighting/reviving-mark-rothkos-harvard-murals-using-light_o |title= Reviving Mark Rothko's Harvard Murals Using Light |date= February 18, 2015 |website=Architect Magazine|access-date=September 11, 2024 }}</ref> Rothko contributed 14 canvases to a permanent installation at the [[Rothko Chapel]], a [[non-denominational]] chapel in [[Houston]], Texas.

Although Rothko lived modestly for much of his life, the resale value of his paintings grew tremendously in the decades following his suicide in 1970. His painting ''[[No. 6 (Violet, Green and Red)]]'' sold in 2014 for $186 million.<ref name="VerandaRothko">{{cite web |last1=DiMarco |first1=Sarah |title=These Are the 10 Most Expensive Paintings in the World |url=https://www.veranda.com/luxury-lifestyle/artwork/g43012775/most-expensive-paintings-in-the-world/ |website=Veranda |publisher=Hearst Digital Media |access-date=13 January 2024 |ref=VerandaRothko}}</ref>