mark rothko at the tate modern

tate modern 

bank side SE19TG

st. pauls, walk over millenium bridge

Celebrating the reunion of all 12 Rothko Segram murals (others flown in from Japan & Washington), the exhibition focuses only on Mark Rothko's later years. I do have to applaud the Tate for keeping the darkest & most intriguing murals for themselves and the British public but I much prefer the display of the 6 murals in the permanent collection or what we call the "Rothko Room".  Bigger doesn't always mean better. Rothko's paintings rely on the subtle vibrations between color & surfaces and they somehow seem withdrawn and uncomfortable in their new environment.

If anything the exhibition triggered my own investigation into the life of this troubled artist (since the exhibition didn't).  I found out he was quite malicious "I hope to ruin the appetite of every son of a bitch who ever eats in that room" and tragic "Mark Rothko was found on the morning of Feb 25 1970, lying dead in a wine-dark sea of his own blood. He had cut very deep into his arms and the pool emanating from him on the floor had created a color field measuring 8ft x 6ft." 

hmmm.....

Kawamura Museum, Chiba, Japan. Rothko Segram Murals, Kandisnsky, Stella