Number 24 (Untitled) 1951

Mark Rothko made this painting with oil, layering rectangles of color on canvas, as if feeling his way through thought. I can see the way the brush dragged across the surface, almost dry in some areas, leaving subtle ridges and textures. I imagine him standing before this canvas, wrestling with the tension between control and letting go. The deep purple looming over the radiant gold feels so weighted. That thin white stripe is almost like a horizon line, or a place to rest your eye. There’s a real physicality to the paint; the colors aren’t just sitting there, they’re breathing, pushing against each other. Rothko was part of a community of artists all trying to figure out how to express something profound. He reminds me of Agnes Martin and her grids, both of them searching for something beyond the surface. Painting is a conversation, a continuous exchange across time. We are all trying to feel our way forward!