Rothko 1957-70
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : Rothko USA
Calendar : 1950-1959 1957 1958 1960-1969 1960 1961 1962 1970
See also : Rothko USA
Calendar : 1950-1959 1957 1958 1960-1969 1960 1961 1962 1970
1957 No 11
2013 SOLD for $ 46M by Christie's
In 1954 Mark Rothko is very irritated because his solo exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago is a great success. The public is still influenced by journalists and he fears that from then on nobody will understand the mystical meaning of his art or, still worse, will consider him as a colorist or a decorator. In the following year Yves Klein will have a similar reaction during the first exhibition of his monochromes.
Rothko's opinion is difficult to anticipate. In 1955 he was furious with an art critic who had declared that he was a leader of post-war art because he perfectly mastered the serenity of the symmetries. In 1954 he expressed a great satisfaction when another critic observed that the tension in the color relationships was so great that it gave the impression of an imminent outburst.
In his fame, Rothko became completely misanthropic and frustrated. In 1955, for the simple pleasure of getting angry with this former friend, Clyfford Still and Barnett Newman described his art as commercial and bourgeois. Subsequently Rothko worked hard on his paintings without resorting to words. He will never disclose the real causes of his unilateral abandonment of the Seagram Murals project in 1959, which was certainly due to his self-esteem.
The opus numbered 11 in the nomenclature of 1957 is in his signature style, with a background of glowing orange structures still livened up by the contrast with a luminescent rectangle. This oil on canvas 202 x 177 cm was sold for $ 46M by Christie's on November 12, 2013 from a lower estimate of $ 25M, lot 21.
Asking Grok to define significance in the career of the artist.
Grok thought :
The painting in question is No. 11 (Untitled) by Mark Rothko, created in early 1957. This oil on canvas work measures approximately 79½ x 69¾ inches (201.9 x 177.2 cm) and features a radiant composition of shimmering orange and vermillion rectangles, interrupted by a delicate band of nearly translucent white, set against a warm, fiery background. It sold for $46,085,000 at Christie's Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening Sale in New York on November 12, 2013 (Lot 21), exceeding its presale estimate of $25-35 million.
In Rothko's career, this painting holds significant importance as a quintessential example from the height of his mature period in the 1950s, when he had fully transitioned to his signature color-field abstractions. By this time, Rothko had abandoned figurative and surrealist elements from his earlier work, focusing instead on large-scale, immersive compositions designed to evoke profound emotional and spiritual experiences rather than depict literal subjects—Rothko himself described such pieces not as "pictures of an experience" but as experiences in themselves. Painted amid the nuclear age's tensions, No. 11 (Untitled) captures the era's duality: the boundless potential of the human spirit alongside underlying dark forces, achieved through subtle tensions in color, brushwork, and form that create a sense of pulsating energy and inner light. It is the largest in a sequence of similarly hued orange paintings from 1957, a landmark year when Rothko refined his technique of layering thin washes of paint to produce ethereal, enveloping effects that draw viewers into a visceral, almost meditative interaction.
Drawing inspiration from epic figures like Nietzsche, Shakespeare, and ancient dramatists such as Aeschylus, Rothko aimed to convey universal human drama through overt simplicity and tense equilibrium, making this work a prime embodiment of his Dionysian "drama" of emotive color. Its prominence is further underscored by inclusion in major retrospectives, including at the Kunsthaus Zürich (1971), Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin (1971-1972), and The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York (1978-1979), affirming its role in solidifying Rothko's legacy as a leading Abstract Expressionist. The 2013 sale also highlighted the painting's market and cultural endurance, coming from a private collection where it had resided for two decades after a prior Christie's auction in 1992.
Rothko's opinion is difficult to anticipate. In 1955 he was furious with an art critic who had declared that he was a leader of post-war art because he perfectly mastered the serenity of the symmetries. In 1954 he expressed a great satisfaction when another critic observed that the tension in the color relationships was so great that it gave the impression of an imminent outburst.
In his fame, Rothko became completely misanthropic and frustrated. In 1955, for the simple pleasure of getting angry with this former friend, Clyfford Still and Barnett Newman described his art as commercial and bourgeois. Subsequently Rothko worked hard on his paintings without resorting to words. He will never disclose the real causes of his unilateral abandonment of the Seagram Murals project in 1959, which was certainly due to his self-esteem.
The opus numbered 11 in the nomenclature of 1957 is in his signature style, with a background of glowing orange structures still livened up by the contrast with a luminescent rectangle. This oil on canvas 202 x 177 cm was sold for $ 46M by Christie's on November 12, 2013 from a lower estimate of $ 25M, lot 21.
Asking Grok to define significance in the career of the artist.
Grok thought :
The painting in question is No. 11 (Untitled) by Mark Rothko, created in early 1957. This oil on canvas work measures approximately 79½ x 69¾ inches (201.9 x 177.2 cm) and features a radiant composition of shimmering orange and vermillion rectangles, interrupted by a delicate band of nearly translucent white, set against a warm, fiery background. It sold for $46,085,000 at Christie's Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening Sale in New York on November 12, 2013 (Lot 21), exceeding its presale estimate of $25-35 million.
In Rothko's career, this painting holds significant importance as a quintessential example from the height of his mature period in the 1950s, when he had fully transitioned to his signature color-field abstractions. By this time, Rothko had abandoned figurative and surrealist elements from his earlier work, focusing instead on large-scale, immersive compositions designed to evoke profound emotional and spiritual experiences rather than depict literal subjects—Rothko himself described such pieces not as "pictures of an experience" but as experiences in themselves. Painted amid the nuclear age's tensions, No. 11 (Untitled) captures the era's duality: the boundless potential of the human spirit alongside underlying dark forces, achieved through subtle tensions in color, brushwork, and form that create a sense of pulsating energy and inner light. It is the largest in a sequence of similarly hued orange paintings from 1957, a landmark year when Rothko refined his technique of layering thin washes of paint to produce ethereal, enveloping effects that draw viewers into a visceral, almost meditative interaction.
Drawing inspiration from epic figures like Nietzsche, Shakespeare, and ancient dramatists such as Aeschylus, Rothko aimed to convey universal human drama through overt simplicity and tense equilibrium, making this work a prime embodiment of his Dionysian "drama" of emotive color. Its prominence is further underscored by inclusion in major retrospectives, including at the Kunsthaus Zürich (1971), Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin (1971-1972), and The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York (1978-1979), affirming its role in solidifying Rothko's legacy as a leading Abstract Expressionist. The 2013 sale also highlighted the painting's market and cultural endurance, coming from a private collection where it had resided for two decades after a prior Christie's auction in 1992.
1958 No. 10
2015 SOLD for $ 82M by Christie's
In 1957 Mark Rothko was outraged by his own fame. His interpretation of basic emotions is not perceived. On the contrary, the public and the art critics admire the dramatic confrontation of his blocks of bright colors, those reds, blues and yellows to which white brings the window of transcendental light.
His style and technique change. Luminosity can also emanate from a dark area when he introduces layers of transparent glaze between layers of colors. He maintains his block structure, but the monochrome is replaced by an inextricable mingle of colors created by the diffusion of almost similar pigments into each other. The edges of the blocks add a frayed confrontation with the background color.
At the end of the year, he tests the deepest blues and reds against large black blocks. At the beginning of 1958, his preference goes for a red turning to brown. Four Darks in Red was painted in red, maroon and black just before he was commissioned for the decoration of the restaurant in the Seagram building under construction.
Rothko is very enthusiastic about this project which will allow him to test his new conceptions of the inner radiance of colors, now favoring dark tones instead of the antagonism of vivid colors,
on a very large surface like Monet with the Grandes Décorations.
Rembrandt knew how to throw the light out of the shadow, there is no reason that could prevent Rothko to do it. Unfortunately his deliberate rejection of the general public feeds his megalomania and he believes that his own mysticism matches the sublime frescoes of Fra Angelico.
He terminated the project without delivering the 30 Seagram works which were then dispersed. Emily Fisher Landau acquired one of them in 1981. This oil on canvas 233 x 176 cm painted in 1958 was sold for $ 22M by Sotheby's on November 8, 2023, lot 20. It is one of only four still in private hands. This example is departing from Rothko's signature composition in horizontal rectangles. It displays a single dark vertical gray rectangle centered over a rich maroon, providing the illusion of a glowing window.
On May 13, 2015, Christie's sold for $ 82M at lot 35B the No 10 (1958), oil on canvas 239 x 176 cm. An infinite variety of colors predominantly brown interweaves within the rectangles whose structure is superseded by a magnificent halo effect.
Along with his horizontal compositions for Seagram, Rothko is trying his new techniques and their effects on smaller canvases. Thus the Black on Maroon 267 x 381 cm for Seagram is accompanied by a vertical Untitled 183 x 114 cm with the same hues. This Untitled was sold for $ 27M by Christie's on May 15, 2013, lot 55.
When he broke with Seagram's, Rothko said not without wickedness that he wanted to cut hunger to the restaurant's guests. With this No. 10 contemporary of that failed project, the frustrated artist wanted to replace the sensational by the sublime but his art was to become increasingly elitist.
The video shared by Christie's shows the key importance of that year in the creative process of this highly temperamental artist.
Grok thought :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc May 14, 2015
Mark Rothko’s No. 10 realized $81,925,000.
For Comparison with Nos 31 and 36
Composition :
Three amorphous forms stacked vertically, floating on a dark expanse; central core with iridescent layering and subtle color collisions at edges.
Colors / Mood :
Somber reds, desolate blacks, with a thin central sliver revealing subtle reds, yellows, pinks, umbers, ochers, and fiery flecks; tense, introspective, with bursts of light through darkness.
His style and technique change. Luminosity can also emanate from a dark area when he introduces layers of transparent glaze between layers of colors. He maintains his block structure, but the monochrome is replaced by an inextricable mingle of colors created by the diffusion of almost similar pigments into each other. The edges of the blocks add a frayed confrontation with the background color.
At the end of the year, he tests the deepest blues and reds against large black blocks. At the beginning of 1958, his preference goes for a red turning to brown. Four Darks in Red was painted in red, maroon and black just before he was commissioned for the decoration of the restaurant in the Seagram building under construction.
Rothko is very enthusiastic about this project which will allow him to test his new conceptions of the inner radiance of colors, now favoring dark tones instead of the antagonism of vivid colors,
on a very large surface like Monet with the Grandes Décorations.
Rembrandt knew how to throw the light out of the shadow, there is no reason that could prevent Rothko to do it. Unfortunately his deliberate rejection of the general public feeds his megalomania and he believes that his own mysticism matches the sublime frescoes of Fra Angelico.
He terminated the project without delivering the 30 Seagram works which were then dispersed. Emily Fisher Landau acquired one of them in 1981. This oil on canvas 233 x 176 cm painted in 1958 was sold for $ 22M by Sotheby's on November 8, 2023, lot 20. It is one of only four still in private hands. This example is departing from Rothko's signature composition in horizontal rectangles. It displays a single dark vertical gray rectangle centered over a rich maroon, providing the illusion of a glowing window.
On May 13, 2015, Christie's sold for $ 82M at lot 35B the No 10 (1958), oil on canvas 239 x 176 cm. An infinite variety of colors predominantly brown interweaves within the rectangles whose structure is superseded by a magnificent halo effect.
Along with his horizontal compositions for Seagram, Rothko is trying his new techniques and their effects on smaller canvases. Thus the Black on Maroon 267 x 381 cm for Seagram is accompanied by a vertical Untitled 183 x 114 cm with the same hues. This Untitled was sold for $ 27M by Christie's on May 15, 2013, lot 55.
When he broke with Seagram's, Rothko said not without wickedness that he wanted to cut hunger to the restaurant's guests. With this No. 10 contemporary of that failed project, the frustrated artist wanted to replace the sensational by the sublime but his art was to become increasingly elitist.
The video shared by Christie's shows the key importance of that year in the creative process of this highly temperamental artist.
Grok thought :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc May 14, 2015
Mark Rothko’s No. 10 realized $81,925,000.
- Christie's 2015 post announces the $81.9 million sale of Mark Rothko's 1958 abstract "No. 10," a guaranteed lot that topped the Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening Sale, reflecting peak demand for mid-century abstraction.
- Absent from auctions for nearly 30 years, the painting's black-bordered orange rectangle embodies Rothko's emotional, color-field style, drawing from his influences in mysticism and human scale.
- The sale contributed to a record $658.5 million total, with Rothko's works later surpassing this price, signaling sustained investor interest in his oeuvre amid art market volatility.
For Comparison with Nos 31 and 36
Composition :
Three amorphous forms stacked vertically, floating on a dark expanse; central core with iridescent layering and subtle color collisions at edges.
Colors / Mood :
Somber reds, desolate blacks, with a thin central sliver revealing subtle reds, yellows, pinks, umbers, ochers, and fiery flecks; tense, introspective, with bursts of light through darkness.
1958 No. 31
2025 for sale on November 17 by Christie's
The No; 31 by Rothko in 1958, oil on canvas 200 x 175 cm, will be sold by Christie's on November 17, 2025, lot 18A.
Asking Grok to compare this painting with No. 10 and No. 36 from the same year.
Overview
All three paintings—No. 31 (Yellow Stripe), No. 10, and No. 36 (Black Stripe)—were created by Mark Rothko in 1958, a pivotal year in his career marked by his work on the Seagram Murals and widely regarded as the height of his creative powers. They exemplify his signature color field style, featuring large, amorphous rectangular forms that evoke emotional depth through layered pigments and subtle tonal variations. However, they differ in size, orientation, color palettes, mood, and market performance. No. 31 is distinguished by its brighter, more joyful tones, contrasting with the darker, more introspective palettes of the other two. No. 10 and No. 36 were both sold at Christie's in May 2015, while No. 31 is scheduled for sale at Christie's on November 17, 2025, as part of The Collection of Robert F. and Patricia G. Ross Weis.
Detailed Analysis
For Comparison with Nos. 10 and 36
Composition :
Sumptuous fields of color with atmospheric depth, featuring a prominent yellow stripe; emotive, layered forms that vibrate with energy.
Colors / Mood :
Vivacious, bold hues producing rapturous and joyful fields; contrasts darker somber palettes of the era, radiating power and optimism.
Pre sale Grok thought :
Quote
Jaegur Martin @sharetwits Sep 5
Is the art market in bubble territory? This Rothko appearing at the next major Christie's sale in New York is expected to fetch north of $50 million. What do you think?
Asking Grok to compare this painting with No. 10 and No. 36 from the same year.
Overview
All three paintings—No. 31 (Yellow Stripe), No. 10, and No. 36 (Black Stripe)—were created by Mark Rothko in 1958, a pivotal year in his career marked by his work on the Seagram Murals and widely regarded as the height of his creative powers. They exemplify his signature color field style, featuring large, amorphous rectangular forms that evoke emotional depth through layered pigments and subtle tonal variations. However, they differ in size, orientation, color palettes, mood, and market performance. No. 31 is distinguished by its brighter, more joyful tones, contrasting with the darker, more introspective palettes of the other two. No. 10 and No. 36 were both sold at Christie's in May 2015, while No. 31 is scheduled for sale at Christie's on November 17, 2025, as part of The Collection of Robert F. and Patricia G. Ross Weis.
Detailed Analysis
- Similarities: These works share Rothko's mature abstract expressionist approach, using oil on canvas to create immersive, non-representational experiences through color and form. They all date from 1958, when Rothko was at his artistic peak, producing pieces that emphasize scale, luminosity from layered paints, and emotional resonance. Each involves rectangular bands or forms that appear to float, drawing viewers into contemplative states. Provenance for all includes prestigious galleries (e.g., Marlborough for No. 10 and No. 36), and they have been exhibited in major institutions, underscoring their art historical significance.
- Differences in Visual and Emotional Impact: No. 31 stands out for its uplifting, radiant quality with bold and joyful colors, potentially incorporating blue and yellow elements based on reproductions, making it feel more optimistic compared to the others. No. 10's taller format and darker, more restrained palette convey a sense of tension and introspection, with subtle bursts of warmer tones evoking a sunset-like drama. No. 36's landscape orientation and deep red ground with a black stripe create a brooding, horizontal pull, aligning closely with the tragic undertones of Rothko's Seagram Murals.
- Market Context: No. 10 achieved the highest price among the sold works, reflecting its larger scale and critical acclaim as a pinnacle piece. No. 36 fetched less, possibly due to its smaller size and more subdued market reception at the time, though still substantial. No. 31's estimate positions it between the two, buoyed by its rarity and the collection's prestige, but its brighter mood may appeal to collectors seeking Rothko's more vibrant side. All sales/auctions occurred at Christie's, highlighting the auction house's dominance in handling major Rothko works from this era.
For Comparison with Nos. 10 and 36
Composition :
Sumptuous fields of color with atmospheric depth, featuring a prominent yellow stripe; emotive, layered forms that vibrate with energy.
Colors / Mood :
Vivacious, bold hues producing rapturous and joyful fields; contrasts darker somber palettes of the era, radiating power and optimism.
Pre sale Grok thought :
Quote
Jaegur Martin @sharetwits Sep 5
Is the art market in bubble territory? This Rothko appearing at the next major Christie's sale in New York is expected to fetch north of $50 million. What do you think?
- The post spotlights Mark Rothko's 1958 abstract "No. 31 (Yellow Stripe)," estimated above $50 million in Christie's October 30, 2025, New York sale from the Weis collection, valued up to $180 million total, prompting debate on art market sustainability.
- Global art auction sales fell 6% in early 2025 versus 2024 per industry reports, amid rising interest rates squeezing high-net-worth liquidity, which fuels bubble speculation as seen in replies tying prices to quantitative easing effects.
- Rothko works have hit records like $86.8 million in 2012, but peer-reviewed analyses in journals like the Journal of Cultural Economics highlight art's correlation with wealth concentration, suggesting current valuations may reflect speculation more than intrinsic value.
1958 No. 36
2015 SOLD for $ 40.5M by Christie's
1958 marked a turning point in the work of Mark Rothko, with two major concerns : increasing the luminescence to avoid assimilation to kitsch and releasing his art from the vertical format less suitable for his new project of the Seagram Murals. It may even seem surprising that the artist had much neglected the horizontal format so conducive to offer an immersion when facing the alignment of the eyes of the viewer.
Looking for strong colors, he achieves an incandescent heat by confronting red and orange. No. 36 (black stripe) is an astonishing abstract landscape, oil on canvas 157 x 170 cm.
The red background is reduced to the edges and inter-blocks of the picture but sets the tone by its aggressive light. The rectangles that widely spread in this new balance of composition are a dazzling orange and a narrower dark red separated by a dominating deep black stripe.
Mark Rothko, by his temperamental personality, did not try to communicate with relatives but with the basic mankind by providing emotions altogether basic and intense. Moved by the strength of the red, he almost reaches his admitted but impossible purpose that the creator of the art and the observer must feel the same mesmerizing effect.
No. 36 was sold for $ 40.5M from a lower estimate of $ 30M by Christie's on May 11, 2015, lot 13A. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Grok thought :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Mar 9, 2015
Excited to announce our May 13 Post-War NY sale includes this #Rothko, No. 36 (Black Stripe).
Composition :
Three shimmering rectangles of contrasting colors against a luminescent ground; horizontal emphasis with brooding drama.
Colors / Mood :
Rich deep colors on a red ground; vibrant yet brooding, evoking intensity and tragedy.
Looking for strong colors, he achieves an incandescent heat by confronting red and orange. No. 36 (black stripe) is an astonishing abstract landscape, oil on canvas 157 x 170 cm.
The red background is reduced to the edges and inter-blocks of the picture but sets the tone by its aggressive light. The rectangles that widely spread in this new balance of composition are a dazzling orange and a narrower dark red separated by a dominating deep black stripe.
Mark Rothko, by his temperamental personality, did not try to communicate with relatives but with the basic mankind by providing emotions altogether basic and intense. Moved by the strength of the red, he almost reaches his admitted but impossible purpose that the creator of the art and the observer must feel the same mesmerizing effect.
No. 36 was sold for $ 40.5M from a lower estimate of $ 30M by Christie's on May 11, 2015, lot 13A. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Grok thought :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Mar 9, 2015
Excited to announce our May 13 Post-War NY sale includes this #Rothko, No. 36 (Black Stripe).
- Christie's 2015 post announces the inclusion of Mark Rothko's 1958 abstract "No. 36 (Black Stripe)"—featuring stacked bands of red, black, and orange—in its May 13 New York Post-War sale, estimated at $30-50 million.
- The painting, from Germany's Museum Frieder Burda collection, exemplifies Rothko's signature color field style, evoking emotional depth through subtle gradients and edges.
- It sold for $40.485 million, underscoring Rothko's strong auction performance, with his works averaging over $20 million in major sales that decade per Artprice data.
Composition :
Three shimmering rectangles of contrasting colors against a luminescent ground; horizontal emphasis with brooding drama.
Colors / Mood :
Rich deep colors on a red ground; vibrant yet brooding, evoking intensity and tragedy.
1960
2019 SOLD for $ 50M by Sotheby's
In 1958 Mark Rothko accepted the contract with the Seagram company for a series of murals to decorate the new Four Seasons restaurant. The dark colors chosen by the artist are paradoxically expressing some disgust of the luxury atmosphere for which he performs this work.
In the following year, while the paintings were nearly completed, Rothko abruptly breaks the contract and returns to Seagram the money that had been paid in advance. He did not give a clear explanation of this decision. The artist was indeed known as temperamental, but we may especially question why he had accepted this contract that went against his social ideas.
The sequence that led to this anger, however, has a plausible hypothesis. Between acceptance and rejection of the contract, Rothko made a tour of Europe. While admiring Michelangelo in Florence, he understands the major role of the place where an artwork is exhibited. He has a too great opinion of his own art to become a mere restaurant decorator.
On May 16, 2019, Sotheby's sold for $ 50M from a lower estimate of $ 35M a 175 x 127 cm oil on canvas painted in 1960, lot 12.
This composition is a hybrid between the dialogue of dark colors, here a burgundy rectangle and a maroon rectangle, and a creamy white rectangle at the bottom of the image. Such an extreme opposition is rare in Rothko's art. It can be compared to a Dark over Light painted in 1954, sold for $ 30.7M by Christie's in 2018, for which the rational explanation was the simulation of a window of light to snap the viewer up to this work.
In 1962 John and Dominique de Menil discover the expressive power of the dark hues of Rothko's Seagram style. From 1965 they sponsor a place of meditation that is much better suited to the artist than a luxury restaurant and which will become the Rothko Chapel.
Please watch the two videos shared by Sotheby's, in the categories First Look and Expert Voices.
Asking Grok to define significance in the career of the artist.
Grok thought :
Untitled (1960) is a significant work in Mark Rothko's career as it exemplifies the peak of his mature style within Abstract Expressionism, particularly his mastery of color-field painting. Created during a pivotal transitional period between two of his most ambitious commissions—the Seagram Murals (1958–1959) and the Rothko Chapel murals (1965–1967)—this painting reflects Rothko's evolution toward more somber, contemplative palettes and forms that emphasize emotional depth, introspection, and the sublime.
By 1960, Rothko had fully refined his signature approach: large, luminous rectangles of color that appear to float on the canvas, built through layered, translucent washes of pigment. Untitled features a composition of deep maroon and lighter crimson forms over a creamy white base, set against a charcoal ground, creating a dynamic interplay of light and shadow that evokes twilight mystery, tension, and transcendence. This work marks his shift from the brighter, more vibrant hues of the 1950s to subtler tonal variations in reds, maroons, and grays, allowing for prolonged viewer engagement and a sense of immersion. Rothko aimed to convey profound human experiences—such as passion, tragedy, and spiritual resonance—through abstraction, and this painting achieves that by balancing warmth and darkness, symbolizing cycles of life, demise, and rebirth.
As one of only 19 canvases Rothko produced in 1960 (with nearly half now in museum collections), it underscores his selective output during a time of international acclaim and personal introspection. Personally selected by Rothko for donation to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (via Peggy Guggenheim, an early patron who gave him his first solo show in 1945), it highlights his intent to place key works in institutions for public contemplation. The painting's palette and mood directly echo the burgundy-dominated Seagram Murals, which Rothko considered a major achievement but ultimately withheld from their commercial setting to preserve their sanctity, donating several to the Tate Gallery instead. Similarly, Untitled presages the ethereal, reverential quality of the Rothko Chapel, where veiled luminosity and hazy boundaries invite meditative experiences.
Overall, this work cements Rothko's legacy as a pioneer of color-field abstraction, pushing the boundaries of painting to evoke the ineffable and emotional, rather than representational, sublime.
In the following year, while the paintings were nearly completed, Rothko abruptly breaks the contract and returns to Seagram the money that had been paid in advance. He did not give a clear explanation of this decision. The artist was indeed known as temperamental, but we may especially question why he had accepted this contract that went against his social ideas.
The sequence that led to this anger, however, has a plausible hypothesis. Between acceptance and rejection of the contract, Rothko made a tour of Europe. While admiring Michelangelo in Florence, he understands the major role of the place where an artwork is exhibited. He has a too great opinion of his own art to become a mere restaurant decorator.
On May 16, 2019, Sotheby's sold for $ 50M from a lower estimate of $ 35M a 175 x 127 cm oil on canvas painted in 1960, lot 12.
This composition is a hybrid between the dialogue of dark colors, here a burgundy rectangle and a maroon rectangle, and a creamy white rectangle at the bottom of the image. Such an extreme opposition is rare in Rothko's art. It can be compared to a Dark over Light painted in 1954, sold for $ 30.7M by Christie's in 2018, for which the rational explanation was the simulation of a window of light to snap the viewer up to this work.
In 1962 John and Dominique de Menil discover the expressive power of the dark hues of Rothko's Seagram style. From 1965 they sponsor a place of meditation that is much better suited to the artist than a luxury restaurant and which will become the Rothko Chapel.
Please watch the two videos shared by Sotheby's, in the categories First Look and Expert Voices.
Asking Grok to define significance in the career of the artist.
Grok thought :
Untitled (1960) is a significant work in Mark Rothko's career as it exemplifies the peak of his mature style within Abstract Expressionism, particularly his mastery of color-field painting. Created during a pivotal transitional period between two of his most ambitious commissions—the Seagram Murals (1958–1959) and the Rothko Chapel murals (1965–1967)—this painting reflects Rothko's evolution toward more somber, contemplative palettes and forms that emphasize emotional depth, introspection, and the sublime.
By 1960, Rothko had fully refined his signature approach: large, luminous rectangles of color that appear to float on the canvas, built through layered, translucent washes of pigment. Untitled features a composition of deep maroon and lighter crimson forms over a creamy white base, set against a charcoal ground, creating a dynamic interplay of light and shadow that evokes twilight mystery, tension, and transcendence. This work marks his shift from the brighter, more vibrant hues of the 1950s to subtler tonal variations in reds, maroons, and grays, allowing for prolonged viewer engagement and a sense of immersion. Rothko aimed to convey profound human experiences—such as passion, tragedy, and spiritual resonance—through abstraction, and this painting achieves that by balancing warmth and darkness, symbolizing cycles of life, demise, and rebirth.
As one of only 19 canvases Rothko produced in 1960 (with nearly half now in museum collections), it underscores his selective output during a time of international acclaim and personal introspection. Personally selected by Rothko for donation to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (via Peggy Guggenheim, an early patron who gave him his first solo show in 1945), it highlights his intent to place key works in institutions for public contemplation. The painting's palette and mood directly echo the burgundy-dominated Seagram Murals, which Rothko considered a major achievement but ultimately withheld from their commercial setting to preserve their sanctity, donating several to the Tate Gallery instead. Similarly, Untitled presages the ethereal, reverential quality of the Rothko Chapel, where veiled luminosity and hazy boundaries invite meditative experiences.
Overall, this work cements Rothko's legacy as a pioneer of color-field abstraction, pushing the boundaries of painting to evoke the ineffable and emotional, rather than representational, sublime.
1960
2022 SOLD for $ 48M by Sotheby's
In 1960 the art of Mark Rothko is rare, with only 19 paintings on canvas made. After the Seagram misadventure, he is indeed challenging himself for a deeper quest for the sublime.
An opus is directly inspired by the dark colors of twilight. The artist recognized the highly emotional moment of mystery, threat and frustration that occur all at once in a nightfall. The scarcity of his trials in that theme assesses that it was a technical challenge and an enthusiastic achievement. It also announces the systematic use of the most subtle dark tones in the meditative period of the Rothko chapel.
That Untitled, a nearly square oil on canvas 180 x 190 cm, was sold for $ 48M from a lower estimate of $ 35M for sale by Sotheby's on May 17, 2022, lot 8. This experimental work had never before been exhibited publicly. It was treasured in the Macklowe collection since 1983.
The signature rectangles in black and in dark maroon look visually mingled over a deep cobalt blue background.
Other examples reintroduce the burning orange red of the sunset.
Grok thought :
Quote
Anthony J Newsham @tony_newsham May 5, 2022
The Macklowe Collection: Lisa Dennison on Rothko's Untitled, 1960 | Expert Voices | Sotheby’s https://sothebys.com/en/videos/Macklowe-Rothko-1960…
An opus is directly inspired by the dark colors of twilight. The artist recognized the highly emotional moment of mystery, threat and frustration that occur all at once in a nightfall. The scarcity of his trials in that theme assesses that it was a technical challenge and an enthusiastic achievement. It also announces the systematic use of the most subtle dark tones in the meditative period of the Rothko chapel.
That Untitled, a nearly square oil on canvas 180 x 190 cm, was sold for $ 48M from a lower estimate of $ 35M for sale by Sotheby's on May 17, 2022, lot 8. This experimental work had never before been exhibited publicly. It was treasured in the Macklowe collection since 1983.
The signature rectangles in black and in dark maroon look visually mingled over a deep cobalt blue background.
Other examples reintroduce the burning orange red of the sunset.
Grok thought :
Quote
Anthony J Newsham @tony_newsham May 5, 2022
The Macklowe Collection: Lisa Dennison on Rothko's Untitled, 1960 | Expert Voices | Sotheby’s https://sothebys.com/en/videos/Macklowe-Rothko-1960…
- This post shares a Sotheby's "Expert Voices" video where Lisa Dennison, Chairman of Sotheby's Americas, analyzes Mark Rothko's Untitled (1960), highlighting its brooding black and maroon fields as emblematic of the artist's exploration of tragedy and human emotion during a pivotal year.
- Featured in the second installment of the Macklowe Collection auction—stemming from Harry and Linda Macklowe's 2020 divorce—the Rothko sold for $48 million on May 16, 2022, helping the full collection achieve a record $922 million, surpassing previous benchmarks for private art sales.
- Shared by Anthony J. Newsham, founder of 1980s Melbourne fashion label Trellini, the timing just days before the auction suggests curation of art insights blending design and contemporary masterpieces, with Rothko's work rooted in abstract expressionism's post-WWII introspection.
1961 Orange, Red, Yellow
2012 SOLD for $ 87M by Christie's
In 1961 Mark Rothko tries his mind in the expressive radiance of rare hues of red and of adjacent colors in vertical arrangements of his signature rectangles, in a renewed approach to the mesmerizing illusion of space.
That comes of course in the follow of his 1954 admiration for Matisse's L'Atelier Rouge, but an influence from Monet's abstract trends in his later works may also be considered just after the great 1960 Monet exhibition at the MoMA.
The dimensions of his canvases have increased and are standardized. The rectangles occupy almost all the available surface, over a negligible neutral background. Most significantly, the preferred color of the artist is now the most vibrant of them : red.
On May 8, 2012, Christie's sold for $ 87M from a lower estimate of $ 35M an oil on canvas, 236 x 206 cm, titled Orange, Red, Yellow. It is dominated by a bright vermilion, omnipresent, whose perfect monochromy is the result of a meticulous brushwork.
This painting was owned since 1967 by a demanding collector who considered it as one of the most successful pieces in Rothko's art.
Response by Grok to an ArtHitParade tweet :
That comes of course in the follow of his 1954 admiration for Matisse's L'Atelier Rouge, but an influence from Monet's abstract trends in his later works may also be considered just after the great 1960 Monet exhibition at the MoMA.
The dimensions of his canvases have increased and are standardized. The rectangles occupy almost all the available surface, over a negligible neutral background. Most significantly, the preferred color of the artist is now the most vibrant of them : red.
On May 8, 2012, Christie's sold for $ 87M from a lower estimate of $ 35M an oil on canvas, 236 x 206 cm, titled Orange, Red, Yellow. It is dominated by a bright vermilion, omnipresent, whose perfect monochromy is the result of a meticulous brushwork.
This painting was owned since 1967 by a demanding collector who considered it as one of the most successful pieces in Rothko's art.
Response by Grok to an ArtHitParade tweet :
- The 2012 auction of Mark Rothko's "Orange, Red, Yellow" for $86.8 million at Christie's marked a historic moment, surpassing the previous record for post-war art, driven by a rare six-and-a-half-minute bidding war that reflected growing investor interest in abstract expressionism.
- Art market analysis from the Journal of Cultural Economics (2015) suggests that Rothko's use of bold colors like red and orange, which fetched higher prices due to psychological appeal, contributed to the painting's value, challenging the notion that artistic merit alone dictates auction outcomes.
- The sale coincided with a global economic recovery post-2008, with art as an alternative asset class gaining traction, as evidenced by a 2013 Deloitte report showing a 29% increase in high-net-worth individuals investing in art, adding context to the painting's record-breaking price.
1961 Shades of Red
2022 SOLD for $ 67M by Christie's
Untitled (Shades of Red), oil on canvas 175 x 142 cm, was sold for $ 67M by Christie's on May 12, 2022, lot 4C. It had been used as a pendant by Mrs Bass with the 1962 No. 1 of similar dimensions, sold for $ 50M in the same sale, lot 5C.
It features his signature rectangles with shaggy borders expressing the intensity of the brush work. The shades skillfully include crimson, red, ruby, scarlet, and deep orange, one on top of one another, surrounded by pale veils from the same pigments in a radiant luminosity.
Response by Grok :
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Christie's @ChristiesInc May 13, 2022
#AuctionUpdate From The Collection of Anne H. Bass, Mark Rothko’s ‘Untitled (Shades of Red)’ realizes $66.8 million
It features his signature rectangles with shaggy borders expressing the intensity of the brush work. The shades skillfully include crimson, red, ruby, scarlet, and deep orange, one on top of one another, surrounded by pale veils from the same pigments in a radiant luminosity.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc May 13, 2022
#AuctionUpdate From The Collection of Anne H. Bass, Mark Rothko’s ‘Untitled (Shades of Red)’ realizes $66.8 million
- The artwork "Untitled (Shades of Red)" by Mark Rothko, sold for $66.8 million at Christie’s in 2022, reflects his abstract expressionist style, developed after immigrating to the U.S. from Russia in 1913, where he explored color fields to evoke emotional depth, a technique later linked to psychological studies showing color impacts mood (e.g., a 2014 study in Art Therapy found red hues increase arousal).
- The painting’s sale from Anne H. Bass’s collection highlights a trend of high-value art auctions amid economic uncertainty, with Christie’s reporting a 2022 global auction total of $8.4 billion, suggesting art as a potential hedge against inflation, challenging the narrative that such investments are purely speculative.
- Rothko’s use of Venetian red, a pigment with historical roots in Renaissance Italy made from ferric oxide, ties the piece to a tradition of enduring color use, with modern synthetic versions altering its original composition, offering a surprising continuity in art materials across centuries.
1962 No. 1
2022 SOLD for $ 50M by Christie's
1962 No. 1 by Mark Rothko, oil on canvas 175 x 152 cm, was sold for $ 50M by Christie's on May 12, 2022, lot 5C.
It had been used as a pendant by Mrs Bass with the 1961 Untitled (Shades of Red) of same height and similar width, sold for $ 67M in the same sale, lot 4C.
Listed as the first painting executed by the artist in that year, this iridescent artwork features a tall nearly square central field of intense orange surrounded by narrow bands of deeper saturated red and orange.
These colors fighting for dominance and waning to the serene pale ground at the edges of the fields may be considered as a fair demonstrator of the artist's lifelong influence from Nietzsche's dramatic human duality between force and chaos.
Grok thought :
Mark Rothko's "No. 1" (1962) exemplifies the pinnacle of his mature abstract expressionist style, marking the first canvas he completed in a year widely regarded as one of the most productive and vibrant periods of his career. During this time, Rothko was at the height of his creative powers, having fully refined his signature color field technique after transitioning from surrealist influences in the 1940s and multiform abstractions in the late 1940s to the large-scale, stacked rectangular forms that defined his work from 1949 onward. The painting's intense orange-dominated composition, with its floating bands of red and orange hues, captures the "immediate radiance" Rothko sought—creating an immersive, almost tangible presence that evokes basic human emotions like tragedy, ecstasy, and doom, much like the sun's warmth on one's back.
In the broader context of Rothko's career, 1962 represented a pivotal juncture where he produced some of his most vital and vivacious paintings, blending technical mastery with profound philosophical undertones. Influenced by Nietzsche's The Birth of Tragedy, the work embodies a tension between Apollonian order (structured forms and balance) and Dionysian chaos (shimmering, unstable color interactions), breaking down traditional artistic barriers to foster a near-religious viewer experience. Rothko's layered application of thin, translucent pigments—burnished and scoured for an iridescent effect—highlights his innovative approach to surface and edge, where colors dissolve and interact to stage an "abstract theater of emotions and ideas." This piece also aligns with key events in 1962, such as his agreement to create the Harvard murals and his critical response to emerging pop art, underscoring his established status amid shifting art world dynamics.
Unlike his later, darker works from the mid-to-late 1960s (such as the Black-Form series), "No. 1" reflects the experiential optimism and chromatic intensity of his peak years, before personal struggles led to more somber tones. Its sale at Christie's in 2022 for $49,625,000 affirms its enduring value as a cornerstone of Rothko's oeuvre, embodying his lifelong pursuit of transcending illusion to reveal emotional truth through flat, unequivocal forms.
It had been used as a pendant by Mrs Bass with the 1961 Untitled (Shades of Red) of same height and similar width, sold for $ 67M in the same sale, lot 4C.
Listed as the first painting executed by the artist in that year, this iridescent artwork features a tall nearly square central field of intense orange surrounded by narrow bands of deeper saturated red and orange.
These colors fighting for dominance and waning to the serene pale ground at the edges of the fields may be considered as a fair demonstrator of the artist's lifelong influence from Nietzsche's dramatic human duality between force and chaos.
Grok thought :
Mark Rothko's "No. 1" (1962) exemplifies the pinnacle of his mature abstract expressionist style, marking the first canvas he completed in a year widely regarded as one of the most productive and vibrant periods of his career. During this time, Rothko was at the height of his creative powers, having fully refined his signature color field technique after transitioning from surrealist influences in the 1940s and multiform abstractions in the late 1940s to the large-scale, stacked rectangular forms that defined his work from 1949 onward. The painting's intense orange-dominated composition, with its floating bands of red and orange hues, captures the "immediate radiance" Rothko sought—creating an immersive, almost tangible presence that evokes basic human emotions like tragedy, ecstasy, and doom, much like the sun's warmth on one's back.
In the broader context of Rothko's career, 1962 represented a pivotal juncture where he produced some of his most vital and vivacious paintings, blending technical mastery with profound philosophical undertones. Influenced by Nietzsche's The Birth of Tragedy, the work embodies a tension between Apollonian order (structured forms and balance) and Dionysian chaos (shimmering, unstable color interactions), breaking down traditional artistic barriers to foster a near-religious viewer experience. Rothko's layered application of thin, translucent pigments—burnished and scoured for an iridescent effect—highlights his innovative approach to surface and edge, where colors dissolve and interact to stage an "abstract theater of emotions and ideas." This piece also aligns with key events in 1962, such as his agreement to create the Harvard murals and his critical response to emerging pop art, underscoring his established status amid shifting art world dynamics.
Unlike his later, darker works from the mid-to-late 1960s (such as the Black-Form series), "No. 1" reflects the experiential optimism and chromatic intensity of his peak years, before personal struggles led to more somber tones. Its sale at Christie's in 2022 for $49,625,000 affirms its enduring value as a cornerstone of Rothko's oeuvre, embodying his lifelong pursuit of transcending illusion to reveal emotional truth through flat, unequivocal forms.
1962 Rust and Two Blacks on Plum
2018 SOLD for $ 36M by Christie's
During the last twenty years of his life, Mark Rothko constructed an extraordinary compilation of the representation of emotions through confrontations between colors.
The darkest colors are not gloomy. They can even be the totality of a painting provided that they are shimmering. To test this very particular style, the artist is encouraged by the dark walls in the Villa of Mysteries at Pompeii.
Rothko wants to share his emotions by immersing the visitor in his art. Most viewers do not have his hypersensitivity or his culture and the dialogues are difficult, especially since the opuses have no title and are not explained. The couple of patrons John and Dominique de Menil manage to integrate this very hermetic teaching.
On November 15, 2018, Christie's sold for $ 36M Untitled (rust and two blacks on plum), oil on canvas painted in 1962, lot 18 C.
The layout of the rectangles is classic in the artist's style and the almost square 152 x 145 cm format is common in the phase following the failed Seagram Murals project. Its tones altogether subtle and extreme appeal to the artist who hangs the artwork in his studio. Dominique de Menil is convinced.
In 1964 the de Menils concretized their relationship with the artist by offering to finance a space of meditation in Houston. For this project that will become the Rothko Chapel, Rothko achieves the best of his darker art. The installation inspired by Monet's Grandes Décorations is posthumous.
Dominique included that seminal 1962 piece in a temporary exhibition during the lifetime of the artist but she did not buy it. Maintaining up to now the enthusiasm of the de Menil family, it had been acquired in 1979 by their son François.
Response by Grok :
Quote
ZaharaBlu @ZaharaBluCom
Born in 1903 Mark Rothko prolific American #artist associated with #AbstractExpressionism completed 836 paintings saw colour as an instrument best known for his colour field paintings November 2018 Untitled (Rust, Blacks on Plum) (1962) sold for $35.7 million by Christie's
The darkest colors are not gloomy. They can even be the totality of a painting provided that they are shimmering. To test this very particular style, the artist is encouraged by the dark walls in the Villa of Mysteries at Pompeii.
Rothko wants to share his emotions by immersing the visitor in his art. Most viewers do not have his hypersensitivity or his culture and the dialogues are difficult, especially since the opuses have no title and are not explained. The couple of patrons John and Dominique de Menil manage to integrate this very hermetic teaching.
On November 15, 2018, Christie's sold for $ 36M Untitled (rust and two blacks on plum), oil on canvas painted in 1962, lot 18 C.
The layout of the rectangles is classic in the artist's style and the almost square 152 x 145 cm format is common in the phase following the failed Seagram Murals project. Its tones altogether subtle and extreme appeal to the artist who hangs the artwork in his studio. Dominique de Menil is convinced.
In 1964 the de Menils concretized their relationship with the artist by offering to finance a space of meditation in Houston. For this project that will become the Rothko Chapel, Rothko achieves the best of his darker art. The installation inspired by Monet's Grandes Décorations is posthumous.
Dominique included that seminal 1962 piece in a temporary exhibition during the lifetime of the artist but she did not buy it. Maintaining up to now the enthusiasm of the de Menil family, it had been acquired in 1979 by their son François.
Response by Grok :
Quote
ZaharaBlu @ZaharaBluCom
Born in 1903 Mark Rothko prolific American #artist associated with #AbstractExpressionism completed 836 paintings saw colour as an instrument best known for his colour field paintings November 2018 Untitled (Rust, Blacks on Plum) (1962) sold for $35.7 million by Christie's
- The post highlights Mark Rothko's birth on September 24, 1903, and his evolution into a key figure in Abstract Expressionism, a movement that shifted the art world's epicenter from Paris to New York post-World War II, with his 1962 painting "Untitled (Rust, Blacks on Plum)" fetching $35.7 million at Christie’s in 2018, reflecting his enduring financial and cultural impact.
- Rothko’s color field paintings, like the white-on-blue and orange-on-yellow works shown, were designed to evoke deep emotional responses, supported by his own statements and studies like those in the 2019 Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, which found viewers’ physiological responses (e.g., heart rate changes) align with his intent to make them weep.
- Despite mainstream praise, Rothko’s rejection of commercialism—evidenced by his unfinished manuscript The Reality of the Artist, rediscovered in 1988—challenges the art market narrative, suggesting his work’s value lies more in personal experience than market speculation.
1970 the penultimate painting
2014 SOLD for $ 40M by Sotheby's
From the later 1940s, Mark Rothko had managed to express by the relations between colors his global vision of all emotions and cultures. From the spring of 1968, everything goes wrong. He is cardiac, drinker, smoker, irritable, depressive, almost impotent. His wife leaves on the 1969 new year's day. He paints in black on gray his new tragic feeling on the meaning of life.
Yet at the beginning of 1970, this highly effective colorist lives a sort of mental restart. The penultimate of the three oils on canvas painted in this very short period, 173 x 137 cm, was sold for $ 40M from a lower estimate of $ 15M by Sotheby's on November 10, 2014, lot 6, then coming from the Mellon collection. It was sold for $ 38M by Christie's on May 13, 2021, lot 10 B.
This vibrant work catches the light by dark glowing colors, in a spectacular departure from the black on gray. It expresses the threat of nightfall by its three dark green regions on a rich saturated indigo blue background.
His last canvas, 152 x 145 cm, belonging to the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., is its counterpart in red over red and acrylic. Both together constitute the translation of his despair into the sublime and his final effort to stage a large-scale abstract scenery. Rothko sliced his arms with a razor on February 25, 1970.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Apr 16, 2021
Mark Rothko's penultimate painting, 'Untitled' from 1970 will highlight the 20th Century Evening Sale in New York on 11 May. This work offers a parting vision of glowing, incandescent color; a luminous, resonant hymn that eloquently encapsulates the spirit of his life's work.
Yet at the beginning of 1970, this highly effective colorist lives a sort of mental restart. The penultimate of the three oils on canvas painted in this very short period, 173 x 137 cm, was sold for $ 40M from a lower estimate of $ 15M by Sotheby's on November 10, 2014, lot 6, then coming from the Mellon collection. It was sold for $ 38M by Christie's on May 13, 2021, lot 10 B.
This vibrant work catches the light by dark glowing colors, in a spectacular departure from the black on gray. It expresses the threat of nightfall by its three dark green regions on a rich saturated indigo blue background.
His last canvas, 152 x 145 cm, belonging to the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., is its counterpart in red over red and acrylic. Both together constitute the translation of his despair into the sublime and his final effort to stage a large-scale abstract scenery. Rothko sliced his arms with a razor on February 25, 1970.
Response by Grok :
Quote
Christie's @ChristiesInc Apr 16, 2021
Mark Rothko's penultimate painting, 'Untitled' from 1970 will highlight the 20th Century Evening Sale in New York on 11 May. This work offers a parting vision of glowing, incandescent color; a luminous, resonant hymn that eloquently encapsulates the spirit of his life's work.
- The painting "Untitled" (1969-70) by Mark Rothko, featured in Christie's 20th Century Evening Sale, reflects his late style of large-scale color fields, influenced by his 1947 collaboration with Clyfford Still, whose abstract landscapes inspired Rothko’s emotional depth, as noted in a 2010 study from the Journal of Art Historiography.
- This work, created shortly before Rothko's suicide in 1970, sold for $46.5 million in 2012, highlighting its cultural value and the art market's fascination with his introspective approach, challenging the narrative that abstract expressionism lacks commercial viability.
- The painting’s auction on May 11, 2021, coincides with a surge in online art sales during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a 2021 Art Basel report showing a 2,000% increase in digital art transactions, reflecting a shift in how collectors engage with works like Rothko’s.
