Rothko Paintings from Munson Collection On View in Paris

Oct. 27, 2023. UTICA — The Munson Museum of Art’s two Mark Rothko paintings joined a retrospective exhibition of the American artist’s work at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris that opened this week.

The works on loan to the Rothko exhibition are “Untitled: Abstraction Number 11” and “Number 18,” iconic examples of work from a pivotal moment in his career. The exhibition runs through April 24.

“Untitled: Abstraction Number 11,” painted in 1947, predates Rothko’s signature color field paintings and features a cacophony of orange, blue, black and silver. “Number 18” was painted in 1951 and features striking vermilion and white on a large canvas.

Munson Director and Chief Curator Stephen Harrison attended the exhibition opening in Paris.

“What a thrill it was to see so many people gathered around our two Rothko masterpieces, which have never been seen outside of the United States,” Harrison said.

The Museum’s contributions to the Rothko exhibition were noted in The New York Times (Mark Rothko at Full Scale, and in Half Light) and Vogue (A Sweeping Mark Rothko Retrospective Opens in Paris at the Fondation Louis Vuitton).

While Munson’s landmark paintings by Rothko are in Paris, a monumental early color field painting by the artist will be on view in the Museum’s Cardamone Gallery as a generous loan from his son, Christopher Rothko. “Untitled” was completed in 1954 and features an expanse of green, gold, and orange.

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Munson is an internationally recognized fine arts center in Utica, New York serving diverse audiences through a renowned Museum of Art, live performances and events, community arts classes, and Pratt Munson, the upstate extension campus of the prestigious Pratt Institute.