Untitled 1945

Mark Rothko made this untitled piece sometime in the 20th century, using oil and mixed media on canvas. It’s really the artist working through something, a process laid bare. Look at the way Rothko lets the paint drip and stain. It's like he's wrestling with the canvas, letting the materials do their thing, a kind of collaboration between artist and medium. The colors are muted, almost hesitant, but they create a strange harmony. There’s this red figure, maybe a head, that seems to be bleeding into the rest of the composition, staining everything around it. It's a powerful gesture, almost violent, but also vulnerable. This piece reminds me a bit of Gorky. Both artists create these semi-abstract forms that are both recognizable and alien. It's like they're trying to find a new language for painting, one that embraces ambiguity and uncertainty.