Seated Female Nude Supporting Head, Right Leg Resting on Left 

Mark Rothko made this ink drawing, "Seated Female Nude Supporting Head, Right Leg Resting on Left," on paper at an unknown date. This work offers a glimpse into the artist’s earlier engagement with the figure before his iconic abstract expressionist works. In the 20th century, the nude was a well-worn subject in academic art. Here, the pose is a classical one, yet Rothko's style is far from academic. The rough lines give the piece an unfinished, exploratory feeling. One wonders if Rothko was responding to the conservative artistic institutions of his day by subverting the traditional nude with his modernist style. Understanding the art of the past requires more than just looking; it involves delving into social and institutional contexts through archives, critical texts, and historical records to reveal the complex dialogues between artists, their work, and the world around them.