Untitled (seated figure in interior) c. 1938

Mark Rothko made this small painting on paper with bold strokes and an interesting palette that includes pink, blue, and white. It’s got this raw, unfinished quality, like a sketch that's still figuring itself out. I can imagine Rothko in his studio, maybe wrestling with ideas, trying to capture something elusive. The seated figure seems lost in thought, while the painting-within-a-painting is so strange and evocative. It’s a painting of another painting! Look how thick and gloopy the paint is in places, giving the surface a real tactile presence. It’s as though the artist is building up layers of feeling and meaning, one brushstroke at a time. There’s something almost childlike in the simplicity of the forms and colors, reminiscent of early modernists like Matisse or even children's drawings. It reminds me that artists are always in conversation with each other, borrowing, stealing, and transforming ideas across time. And that painting is a way of thinking, feeling, and making sense of the world, without necessarily having all the answers.