Head of Woman (Sonia Rothkowitz)

c. 1932

Mark Rothko

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

Mark Rothko

The head and upper shoulders of a light-skinned woman nearly fill this vertical portrait, which is painted with visible brushstrokes and mottled dabs. The woman’s shoulders are square to us, but she looks just off to our right. She has close-set, heavy-lidded brown eyes under low, thin brows. Her full, dark pink, bow-shaped lips are closed, and she has a slight double chin. Her high cheekbones slant slightly up and to our left. Her dark brown hair is pulled back, and she wears a garment painted in daubs of spruce, shamrock, and forest green. The background is painted broadly in earthy and neutral brown.
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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    oil on canvas

  • Credit Line

    Gift of The Mark Rothko Foundation, Inc.

  • Dimensions

    overall: 44.1 x 37.1 cm (17 3/8 x 14 5/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1986.56.660

  • Copyright

    Copyright © 1998 Kate Rothko Prizel and Christopher Rothko

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

The artist [1903-1970]; his estate; transferred 1979 to The Mark Rothko Foundation, Inc., New York; gift 1986 to NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1933

  • An Exhibition of Oils, Water-colors, Drawings by Marcus Rothkowitz, Contemporary Arts Gallery, New York, 1933, no. 6.

2012

  • Mark Rothko, Portland Art Museum, Oregon, 2012, no catalogue.

Bibliography

1984

  • Clearwater, Bonnie. Mark Rothko: Works on Paper. New York, 1984: 19, repro.

1992

  • American Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1992: 273, repro.

1998

  • Anfam, David. Mark Rothko: The Works on Canvas: Catalogue Raisonné. New Haven and London, 1998: no. 17, repro.

Wikidata ID

Q20192889

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