Archaic Phantasy

1945

Mark Rothko

Painter, American, born Russia (now Latvia), 1903 - 1970

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    oil on canvas

  • Credit Line

    Gift of The Mark Rothko Foundation, Inc.

  • Dimensions

    overall: 123.1 x 61.4 cm (48 7/16 x 24 3/16 in.)
    framed: 126.4 x 64.9 x 5.1 cm (49 3/4 x 25 9/16 x 2 in.)

  • Accession

    1986.43.11

  • Copyright

    Copyright © 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel and Christopher Rothko

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

The artist [1903-1970]; his estate; consigned 1970 to (Marlborough Gallery, Inc., New York); transferred 1977 back to the artist's estate;[1] transferred 1979 to The Mark Rothko Foundation, Inc., New York; gift 1986 to NGA.
[1] For a detailed discussion of the transactions surrounding the Rothko estate see Lee Seldes, Legacy of Mark Rothko, New York, 1978.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1947

  • Annual Exhibition of Contemporary American Painting, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 1947-1948, no. 126, as Archaic Fantasy.

  • Mark Rothko: Recent Paintings, Betty Parsons Gallery, New York, 1947, no. 3, as Archaic Fantasy.

1978

  • Mark Rothko, 1903-1970: A Retrospective, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Walker Art Cednter, Minneapolis; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1978-1979, no. 35, repro. (shown only in New York).

1986

  • Jung and Abstract Expressionism: The Collective Image Among Individual Voices, Hofstra Museum, Emily Lowe Gallery, Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, 1986, unnumbered catalogue, fig. 7.

2012

  • Mark Rothko: Selections from the National Gallery of Art, Academy Art Museum, Easton, 2012, no catalogue.

Bibliography

1988

  • Polcari, Steven. "Mark Rothko: Heritage, Environment, and Tradition." Smithsonian Studies in American Art, 2, no. 2 (1988): 46, repro.

1991

  • Polcari, Stephen. Abstract Expressionism and the Modern Experience. Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1991: 137, repro.

1992

  • American Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1992: 301, repro.

1998

  • Anfam, David. Mark Rothko: The Works on Canvas: Catalogue Raisonné. New Haven and London, 1998: no. 265, repro., as Archaic Fantasy.

Inscriptions

lower left: MARK ROTHKO; center right reverse, sideways: MARK ROTHKO / Archaic Phantasy / 1945

Wikidata ID

Q20193611

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