Rebecca Wright reviews the exhibition Rothko in Britain at the Whitechapel Art Gallery, on view through February 26, 2012.

Wright notes that Abstract Expressionism holds a "pivotal position… in the canon of art history, as the turning point when 'art' migrated from Europe to America following the Second World War. By using a past exhibition as a case study (Rothko's first solo show held in 1961) Rothko in Britain manages to break down the 'Americanness' of Abstract Expressionism, revealing to us a fascinating dialogue established between artists on either side of the Atlantic."