Untitled (Seagram Mural sketch) 1958

This large canvas by Mark Rothko is all deep reds and maroons. It's one of the studies he made for the Seagram Murals commission. Imagine Rothko in his studio, wrestling with these color blocks, trying to get them just right. You can see the brushstrokes, the way the paint is layered, how he built up these almost-black vertical shapes. Did he start with thin washes, then get thicker, more assertive as he went along? As a painter myself, I wonder if he ever got frustrated, or if he just kept going until the painting spoke to him. What’s fascinating about Rothko is how he pulls you into a world of feeling through the simplest means. He’s part of this grand conversation among painters, like Matisse or even cave painters, about how color and form can express something beyond words. It’s more like music, where you feel it in your gut. Rothko leaves space for us to bring our own feelings and interpretations. Painting is not about answers, but more about questions.