No. 3 (Bright Blue, Brown, Dark Blue on Wine) 1962

Mark Rothko made this large painting, No. 3, out of oil on canvas. It's all about layers, you know? Rothko didn't want to just slap paint on, he built up these hazy blocks of color. It's like he was trying to find the color that was underneath the color, the feeling under the feeling. Up close, you can see the edges aren't clean. They bleed into each other, which makes the colors vibrate. I like how you can almost feel the colors breathing. It’s not just something to look at; it's something to feel. Notice that blurry space between the brown and the blue, it has so much depth. It's like looking into the night sky. It’s not about precision; it's about the way the colors sit together. Looking at this painting, I'm reminded of Agnes Martin’s subtle grids. Rothko and Martin, they both knew how to make simple forms carry complex emotions. It's really about the conversations that happen between the paintings. Each one posing new questions and throwing ideas around.