Rothko. wtf? I don't get it

Well, you wouldn't. You'd just be accused of knocking off Jackson Pollock.

He did something brand new in the world of art, at the risk of being laughed at. You haven't because you don't have the imagination or the creativity or courage. He's an artist. Most of us aren't.

It’s like Jackson Pollock. £50m+ for paintings which are paint flicked on.

if I did that, I would be laughed at

I'm another one that didn't get it until I sat in front of some of his paintings at the Tate Modern. It's a completely different experience. This will sound a bit 'woo', but they seem to shimmer and change a bit when you look at them - almost as if they're emitting light.
I believe there's a church in the USA that has Rothko paintings and people break down in front of them and have spiritual experiences!

I find Rothko a bit meh but what I find totally bemusing is Morton Feldman's musical composition about him. Google it as MN won't let me post a link.
Personally I'd recommend putting ear plugs before playing it....

I went to that! You have described it much more eloquently than I could.

Yes, as PPs have said you have to see the originals. They are huge and the choice of colours works to create a particular mood and atmosphere. A tiny image on a phone screen won’t capture it at all. The same with Jackson Pollock (who could also draw beautifully).

This is it, you can't really understand or truly appreciate a lot of 20c art without studying it in context and actually looking at a load of it in galleries. Even what today looks like chocolate box stuff like the impressionists was once revolutionary stuff that people couldn't bear so see and thought was just blobs of paint.

That said if you look at some modern knock off of a Rothko or a Jackson Pollock ( the kind of shit you see in hotels or offices) or similar then look at the real thing you will see why the originals are so good and why there's more to them than you might see at first.

I thought exactly the same as you until a few weeks ago when I saw the Turner and Rothko room at Tate Britain. Rothko at least as good as Turner, same genre, same expression on the canvas. Unbelievably accomplished. Came away with my new favourite picture, it was so beautiful

Years ago there was a Rothko exhibition at the Tate Modern which brought together a lot of his paintings. Seeing them altogether was a very immersive experience. Difficult to put into words, but really affecting and has stayed in my mind ever since. I don't think it is necessary to understand why a painting has an impact on you, just as it isn't important to know why a piece of music does, it is just a personal experience. In the case of the Rothkos, it gave me a very peaceful feeling, almost like meditation. Everyone reacts individually to art, and that's surely a good thing.

I love Rothko too, you can absolutely loose yourself in the depths. Absolutely glorious.

I love Rothko.

Not reproductions, to go to Tate Modern and sit in front of the huge originals.

The dense colour swamps you in, they are moody, vibrant…

And I don’t think ‘anyone’ can do it.

The exact pigment, the size and shape and background of each colour… it all adds up.

I appreciate how they may look to us now in the 2020’s, but a lot of their importance/worth lies in how groundbreaking they were in the 40’s/50’s onwards when he made them; a completely different way to express something than what was the norm

I'm not really a fan but I do like the colour = emotion aspect. We did our own Rothko style paintings in Y5 art recently and I thought I'd have a go with the children. I'd say mine was just as good as an original 😂.