They Saw Rothko

I was just reading a magazine article and it described people experiencing emotions at an art exhibit, in particular it said they were viewing Rothko. Not that they were viewing works by Rothko or paintings Rothko had done. Rothko, dead now nearly 50 years. I have of course always heard the work of well recognized artists referred to like this. More often musical recordings or arrangements. You listen to Mozart or the Beatles of course. It’s a fairly common way to reference the work not just “by” the creator but as the creator.

Is our work us? When I see a mobile am I seeing Calder?

In a materialistic, scientific way- no. Clearly not

But in a way that speaks to a deeper truth more real than molecules and matter, I’m inclined to agree with the awkward language. Although a large panel of color treatment will never perfectly describe Rothko, it does reflect a part of him at a moment in his life. He acted on it. It is a reflection of Rothko, and just as if you looked into a mirror revealing the man himself where you would say you saw Rothko, so you could express the same, if not so much more so, by looking into the man through the pigments.

(reprinted from 2017 journal entry)