A characteristic format of Mark Rothko’s work, tends to be stacked rectangles of colour that appear to float within the boundaries of the canvas. Rothko stains the canvases with thin layers of pigment and builds gradually, sometimes shading with lighter colours underneath. By paying attention to the edges of where the colours meet, Rothko achieved the effect of light radiating from the image itself. Rothko wanted to lend his pictures what he called an “inner light,” a quality of luminosity that suggested vivid depths almost like staring into fire or light, This, he hoped, would encourage an experience for the viewer not unlike that of an encounter with another human being.
‘Number 61’
‘No.9 Dark over Light Earth’
‘No.13 (White, Red on Yellow)’
D
‘Number 14’
This technique suited Rothko’s metaphysical aims: to offer painting as a doorway
into purely spiritual realms, making it as immaterial and evocative as music, and to directly communicate the most essential, raw forms of human emotion.
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