Rothko and Music

Mark Rothko, Yellow over Purple, 1956 (courtesy of Kate Rothko Prizel and Christ
Mark Rothko, Yellow over Purple, 1956 (courtesy of Kate Rothko Prizel and Christopher Rothko)

In excerpt from his new book, Mark Rothko: from the Inside Out (Yale University Press), Christopher Rothko reflects on his father's love of music (in particular Mozart) and its influence on his paintings.

Christopher Rothko writes: "Rothko paintings, at their most affective, do engage us in a full-body experience touching all the senses. On the most basic level, we see the paintings, but if you suspend the experience at your visual receptors, you have not really seen a Rothko. Like music, Rothko paintings offer a gateway to our inner selves. They evoke a visceral reaction that in turn sparks feelings and engages our minds, one that indeed offers great riches because all can speak it. In this way, they provide a basic level of human connection that starts between the artist and the viewer, but extends to how we speak with the world around us."