New Work by Rothko: A Book of Writings

The New York Times > Arts > Art & Design: "hristopher Rothko was only 6 when his famous father, the painter Mark Rothko, committed suicide in 1970. "I have a number of memories, but I can count them on my various fingers and toes, and strangely enough it's his voice that sticks with me," he said. Now Mr. Rothko has found a way to channel his father's voice not only for himself but also for the public, in the process resurrecting a long-lost manuscript by Mark Rothko that helps illuminate the philosophical underpinnings of Color Field paintings, the artist's greatest breakthrough.

This month Yale University Press will publish those writings in a deceptively slender volume titled "The Artist's Reality: Philosophies of Art," the only book by Mark Rothko. In it, he muses on the history of art and the artist's place and function in the world. He also begins to explore the use of color, light and space in search of "an ultimate unity."

"I'm doing a talk on the book called 'Mark Rothko's Crystal Ball,' because it's uncanny and almost unnerving the degree to which he presages the work to come," said Christopher Rothko, who refers to passages in the book as the "abstractionist's manifesto." "For art is always the final generalization," the artist wrote. "It must provide the implications of infinity to any situation. And if our own environment is too diverse to allow a philosophical unity, it must find some symbol to express at least the desire for one."

His son explained over lunch in Manhattan last week, "He's seeking this confluence of religion and philosophy and poetry, which isn't necessarily only what his later paintings are about, but it's certainly a rich, meaningful understanding of them." The sometimes stilted book provides insights into Rothko's thoughts on ancient and primitive art, the Renaissance and Surrealism, among other topics. It reflects the author's intense intellectual curiosity and ambition, as well as a polemical streak. "