Mark Rothko at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris

Place: Paris, France
Fondation Louis Vuitton

By RICCARDO BIANCHINI - 2024-03-03

The lobby of the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris during the exhibition “Mark Rothko” in February 2024 © Gehry Partners, LLP and Frank O. Gehry; photo © Riccardo Bianchini/Inexhibit

Mark Rothko at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris

Until April 2, 2014, the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris hosts “Mark Rothko”, arguably the largest and most comprehensive retrospective ever made on the Russian-born American painter (born Markus Rothkovitch, 1903 Dvinsk – 1970 New York City).

Unlike many, less extensive, exhibitions, the Paris retrospective doesn’t make a broad use of texts and contextualization items, apart from a few large prints of fascinating photographs of the artist in his studio; the curators – Suzanne Pagé and the artist’s son Christopher Rothko – decided in fact to presents Rothko’s art predominantly by his works.

Stretching across 11 galleries, the exhibition presents a whopping ensemble of 115 paintings by Rothko, from his early figurative works – including the famous Subway series -, to the first experiments with abstraction, to many works of his “classic” period which form the centerpiece of the exhibition.
That chronological sequence, masterfully arranged, succeeds in conveying to the public Rothko’s artistic research and never-relenting experimentation. In the last part, the retrospective also features a “dialogue” between Rothko’s paintings and a few sculptures by Alberto Giacometti, an installation reminiscent of a never-realized joint project for the UNESCO headquarters in Paris.

Overall the exhibition nicely fits into the rooms of the Fondation Vuitton’s building designed by Frank Gehry; the works are presented on a light-gray background which helps the visitors “enter” into the paintings; all works are carefully lit and the illumination is tailored on each painting’s colors and lightness; the dark paintings of the Seagram Murals series are immersed into a dim-lighted space as in their original location at the Tate Modern in London.

The exhibition’s main strength, namely its vastness, is also its only drawback; it is so large and comprises so many pieces that it’s difficult to give all of them the thorough attention they deserve; so, if you admire Rothko’s work as I do, I strongly suggest you reserve a full day for the visit or, better, split it into two days.

Mark Rothko
From 18.10.2023 to 02.04.2024
Fondation Louis Vuitton
8, Avenue du Mahatma Gandhi Bois de Boulogne, 75116 Paris
https://www.fondationlouisvuitton.fr/en/events/mark-rothko

Mark Rothko, Self Portrait, 1936, © 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko – Adagp, Paris, 2024; photo © Riccardo Bianchini/Inexhibit. The first room features several figurative paintings Rothko made in the 1930s, including his famous depictions of the New York subway.

Rites of Lilith, 1945, © 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko – Adagp, Paris, 2024; photo © Riccardo Bianchini/Inexhibit. After his early figurative period, Rothko’s works take inspiration from Surrealism and ancient mythology.

Gallery 2 is dedicated to Rothko’s “multiform” paintings and the early examples of the artist’s “classic” works of the late 1940s, © 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko – Adagp, Paris, 2024; photo © Riccardo Bianchini/Inexhibit.

Room 5 presents the famous Seagram Murals series that Rothko initially made for the Four Seasons restaurant in New York and that, after the artist refused to deliver the paintings to the original commissioner, were donated to the Tate Gallery, © 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko – Adagp, Paris, 2024; photo © Riccardo Bianchini/Inexhibit.

In the foreground, Alberto Giacometti, Homme qui marche I, 1960, with Mark Rothko’s Untitled, 1969 and Untitled, 1970 in the background, © 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko – Adagp, Paris, 2024; photo © Riccardo Bianchini/Inexhibit.

Another view of Gallery 10 which features works of the Black and Gray series from the late 1960s together with sculptures by Alberto Giacometti, © 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko – Adagp, Paris, 2024; photo © Riccardo Bianchini/Inexhibit

Mark Rothko at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris

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