Prehistoric Memory
Date
Medium
Support
Dimensions
25 3/4 x 19 3/8 in. (65.4 x 49.2 cm)
Inscription
Lower left in yellow paint: MARK ROTHKO
Collection
Private Collection, New York. © Kate Rothko Prizel and Christopher Rothko
Exhibitions
Mark Rothko: Exhibition of Watercolors, Mortimer Brandt Gallery, New York, April 22 – May 4, 1946.
Oils and Watercolors by Mark Rothko, San Francisco Museum of Art, August 13 – September 8, 1946, as Prehistoric Memory.
Oils and Watercolors by Mark Rothko, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, October 1 – 15, 1946, as Prehistoric Memory.
Betty Parsons' Private Collection, Finch College Museum of Art, March 13 – April 24, 1968, no. 141, as Prehistoric Memory.
Betty Parsons' Private Collection, Cranbrook Academy of Art Museum, September 22 – October 20, 1968.
Betty Parsons' Private Collection, Brooks Memorial Art Gallery, November 1 – December 1, 1968.
Twentieth-Century American Drawing: Three Avant-Garde Generations, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, January 23 – March 28, 1976, cat. 120, as Prehistoric Memory.
Amerikanische Zeichner des 20. Jahrhunderts: Drei Generationen von der Armory Show bis heute, Staatliche Kunsthalle Baden-Baden, May 27 – July 11, 1976, cat. 103, as Vorgeschichtliche Erinnerung.
Amerikanische Zeichner des 20. Jahrhunderts – Drei Generation von der Armory Show bis heute, Kunsthalle Bremen, July 18 – August 29, 1976, cat. 103, as Vorgeschichtliche Erinnerung.
Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, October 27, 1978 – January 14, 1979, cat. 60, as Prehistoric Memory.
Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, February 10 – April 1, 1979, cat. 60, as Prehistoric Memory.
Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective, Walker Art Center, April 22 – June 10, 1979, cat. 60, as Prehistoric Memory.
Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, July 10 – September 23, 1979.
Un Art autre, un autre art: Les années 50, Artcurial, Centre d'art plastique contemporain, April – July, 1984, no. 116, as Souvenirs Préhistoriques.
La planète affolée: Surréalisme, dispersion et influences, 1938–1947, Centre de la Vieille Charité, Musées de Marseille, April 12 – June 30, 1986, no. 280, as Prehistoric Memory.
El surrealismo entre viejo y nuevo mundo, Centro atlántico de arte moderno, December 4, 1989 – February 4, 1990, as Memoria prehistórica.
Quelque chose de très mystérieux: Intuitions esthétiques de Michel Tapié, Artcurial, Centre d'art plastique contemporain, March 24 – May 12, 1994.
Mark Rothko: Paintings on Paper, National Gallery of Art, November 19, 2023 – March 31, 2024, as Prehistoric Memory.
Mark Rothko: Paintings on Paper, The National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Norway, May 16 – September 22, 2024.
Oils and Watercolors by Mark Rothko, San Francisco Museum of Art, August 13 – September 8, 1946, as Prehistoric Memory.
Oils and Watercolors by Mark Rothko, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, October 1 – 15, 1946, as Prehistoric Memory.
Betty Parsons' Private Collection, Finch College Museum of Art, March 13 – April 24, 1968, no. 141, as Prehistoric Memory.
Betty Parsons' Private Collection, Cranbrook Academy of Art Museum, September 22 – October 20, 1968.
Betty Parsons' Private Collection, Brooks Memorial Art Gallery, November 1 – December 1, 1968.
Twentieth-Century American Drawing: Three Avant-Garde Generations, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, January 23 – March 28, 1976, cat. 120, as Prehistoric Memory.
Amerikanische Zeichner des 20. Jahrhunderts: Drei Generationen von der Armory Show bis heute, Staatliche Kunsthalle Baden-Baden, May 27 – July 11, 1976, cat. 103, as Vorgeschichtliche Erinnerung.
Amerikanische Zeichner des 20. Jahrhunderts – Drei Generation von der Armory Show bis heute, Kunsthalle Bremen, July 18 – August 29, 1976, cat. 103, as Vorgeschichtliche Erinnerung.
Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, October 27, 1978 – January 14, 1979, cat. 60, as Prehistoric Memory.
Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, February 10 – April 1, 1979, cat. 60, as Prehistoric Memory.
Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective, Walker Art Center, April 22 – June 10, 1979, cat. 60, as Prehistoric Memory.
Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, July 10 – September 23, 1979.
Un Art autre, un autre art: Les années 50, Artcurial, Centre d'art plastique contemporain, April – July, 1984, no. 116, as Souvenirs Préhistoriques.
La planète affolée: Surréalisme, dispersion et influences, 1938–1947, Centre de la Vieille Charité, Musées de Marseille, April 12 – June 30, 1986, no. 280, as Prehistoric Memory.
El surrealismo entre viejo y nuevo mundo, Centro atlántico de arte moderno, December 4, 1989 – February 4, 1990, as Memoria prehistórica.
Quelque chose de très mystérieux: Intuitions esthétiques de Michel Tapié, Artcurial, Centre d'art plastique contemporain, March 24 – May 12, 1994.
Mark Rothko: Paintings on Paper, National Gallery of Art, November 19, 2023 – March 31, 2024, as Prehistoric Memory.
Mark Rothko: Paintings on Paper, The National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Norway, May 16 – September 22, 2024.
References
Constable, Rosalind. "The Betty Parsons Collection." Art News 67 (March 1968): 59.
Goossen, Elayne C., and Elayne H. Varian. Betty Parsons’ Private Collection. Finch College, New York, 1968: n.p..
Staatliche Kunsthalle Baden-Baden. Amerikanische Zeichner des 20. Jahrhunderts – Drei Generationen von der Armory Show bis heute. Baden-Baden, Germany, 1976: 27, n.p. (b/w).
Waldman, Diane. Twentieth-Century American Drawing: Three Avant-Garde Generations. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, 1976: 77.
Waldman, Diane. Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, 1978: 271, cat. 60 (b/w).
Carter, Malcolm N. "Art, Money, and the Troubles of Mark Rothko." Horizon 21 (October 1978): 27 (color).
Lucie-Smith, Edward, Sam Hunter, Adolf Max Vogt, Giulio Carlo Argan. Kunst der Gegenwart: Propyläen Kunstgeschichte: Supplementband II. Frankfurt am Main, Germany, 1978: 177, fig. 150b (b/w).
Zamoiski, Clair. “Chronology.” In Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective, by Diane Waldman. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, 1978: 271.
Polcari, Stephen. "The Intellectual Roots of Abstract Expressionism: Mark Rothko." Arts Magazine 54, no. 1 (September 1979): 128, fig. 10 (b/w).
"Swamped with Rothko." The Saturday Review. January 6, 1979: n.p., (b/w).
Fujieda, Teruo. “Special Feature: Mark Rothko.” Mizue 888 (March 1979): 17 (color).
Polcari, Stephen. "Mark Rothko," Arts Magazine 53, no. 5 (January 1979): 3 (color).
Cavaliere, Barbara. "Notes on Rothko." Flash Art 86/87 (January – February 1979): 34 (b/w).
Abadie, Daniel. Un Art Autre, Un Autre Art. Centre d’Art Plastique Contemporain, Paris, 1984: 70.
Musées de Marseill. La planète affolée: Surréalisme Dispersion et Influences, 1938–1947. Marseille, France, 1986: n.p., 123 (b/w).
Polcari, Stephen. “Mark Rothko: Heritage, Environment, and Tradition.” Smithsonian Studies in American Art 2, no. 2 (Spring 1988): 42-43.
Centro atlántico de arte moderno. El surrealismo entre Viejo y Nuevo Mundo. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain, 1989: 302, 247 (color).
Chave, Anna C. Mark Rothko: Subjects in Abstraction. New Haven, CT, 1989: 151-152, fig. 36 (b/w).
Polcari, Stephen. Abstract Expressionism and the Modern Experience. New York, 1991: 124.
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. Louisiana: Samling og bygninger The collection and the Buildings. Humlebaek, Denmark, 1992: 365, cat. 1161 (color).
Weiss, Jeffrey. “Submón.” In Mark Rothko, by Oliver Wick et al. Fundació Joan Miró, Barcelona, Spain, 2000: 29.
Wick, Oliver, et al. Mark Rothko. Fundació Joan Miró, Barcelona, Spain, 2000: 29.
Weiss, Jeffrey. “Underworld.” In Mark Rothko, by Oliver Wick et al. Fondation Beyeler, Basel, Switzerland, 2001: 41.
Wick, Oliver, et al. Mark Rothko. Fondation Beyeler, Basel, Switzerland, 2001: 41.
Greenhalgh, Adam. Mark Rothko: Paintings on Paper. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2023: 22-23, 182, 189n48, plate 30 (color).
Warnock, Molly. “The Expanse: The Art of Mark Rothko.” Artforum 62, no. 7 (April 2024): 98.
Wilkin, Karen. “Panoramic Rothko: On Mark Rothko: Paintings on Paper at the National Gallery of Art, Washington.” The New Criterion 42, no. 7 (March 2024): 48.
Goossen, Elayne C., and Elayne H. Varian. Betty Parsons’ Private Collection. Finch College, New York, 1968: n.p..
Staatliche Kunsthalle Baden-Baden. Amerikanische Zeichner des 20. Jahrhunderts – Drei Generationen von der Armory Show bis heute. Baden-Baden, Germany, 1976: 27, n.p. (b/w).
Waldman, Diane. Twentieth-Century American Drawing: Three Avant-Garde Generations. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, 1976: 77.
Waldman, Diane. Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, 1978: 271, cat. 60 (b/w).
Carter, Malcolm N. "Art, Money, and the Troubles of Mark Rothko." Horizon 21 (October 1978): 27 (color).
Lucie-Smith, Edward, Sam Hunter, Adolf Max Vogt, Giulio Carlo Argan. Kunst der Gegenwart: Propyläen Kunstgeschichte: Supplementband II. Frankfurt am Main, Germany, 1978: 177, fig. 150b (b/w).
Zamoiski, Clair. “Chronology.” In Mark Rothko, 1903–1970: A Retrospective, by Diane Waldman. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, 1978: 271.
Polcari, Stephen. "The Intellectual Roots of Abstract Expressionism: Mark Rothko." Arts Magazine 54, no. 1 (September 1979): 128, fig. 10 (b/w).
"Swamped with Rothko." The Saturday Review. January 6, 1979: n.p., (b/w).
Fujieda, Teruo. “Special Feature: Mark Rothko.” Mizue 888 (March 1979): 17 (color).
Polcari, Stephen. "Mark Rothko," Arts Magazine 53, no. 5 (January 1979): 3 (color).
Cavaliere, Barbara. "Notes on Rothko." Flash Art 86/87 (January – February 1979): 34 (b/w).
Abadie, Daniel. Un Art Autre, Un Autre Art. Centre d’Art Plastique Contemporain, Paris, 1984: 70.
Musées de Marseill. La planète affolée: Surréalisme Dispersion et Influences, 1938–1947. Marseille, France, 1986: n.p., 123 (b/w).
Polcari, Stephen. “Mark Rothko: Heritage, Environment, and Tradition.” Smithsonian Studies in American Art 2, no. 2 (Spring 1988): 42-43.
Centro atlántico de arte moderno. El surrealismo entre Viejo y Nuevo Mundo. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain, 1989: 302, 247 (color).
Chave, Anna C. Mark Rothko: Subjects in Abstraction. New Haven, CT, 1989: 151-152, fig. 36 (b/w).
Polcari, Stephen. Abstract Expressionism and the Modern Experience. New York, 1991: 124.
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. Louisiana: Samling og bygninger The collection and the Buildings. Humlebaek, Denmark, 1992: 365, cat. 1161 (color).
Weiss, Jeffrey. “Submón.” In Mark Rothko, by Oliver Wick et al. Fundació Joan Miró, Barcelona, Spain, 2000: 29.
Wick, Oliver, et al. Mark Rothko. Fundació Joan Miró, Barcelona, Spain, 2000: 29.
Weiss, Jeffrey. “Underworld.” In Mark Rothko, by Oliver Wick et al. Fondation Beyeler, Basel, Switzerland, 2001: 41.
Wick, Oliver, et al. Mark Rothko. Fondation Beyeler, Basel, Switzerland, 2001: 41.
Greenhalgh, Adam. Mark Rothko: Paintings on Paper. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2023: 22-23, 182, 189n48, plate 30 (color).
Warnock, Molly. “The Expanse: The Art of Mark Rothko.” Artforum 62, no. 7 (April 2024): 98.
Wilkin, Karen. “Panoramic Rothko: On Mark Rothko: Paintings on Paper at the National Gallery of Art, Washington.” The New Criterion 42, no. 7 (March 2024): 48.
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