The
Rothko Chapel is a non-denominational
chapelA chapel is a building used as a place for fellowship and of worship for Christians. It may be attached to an institution such as a large church, a college, a hospital, a palace, a prison or a cemetery, or may be an entirely free-standing building, sometimes with its own grounds...
in
Houston, TexasHouston is the fourth-largest city in the United States and the largest city within the state of Texas. As of the 2008 U.S. Census estimate, the city has a population of 2.2 million within an area of 600 square miles . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of...
founded by John and
Dominique de MenilDominique de Ménil was a French-American art collector and museum founder who was an heiress to the Schlumberger Limited oil-equipment fortune.-Life:...
. The interior serves not only as a chapel, but also as a major work of modern art. On its walls are fourteen black but color hued paintings by
Mark RothkoMark Rothko, born Marcus Rothkowitz , was a Latvian-born American painter and printmaker. He is classified as an abstract expressionist, although he himself rejected this label, and even resisted the classification as an "abstract painter".- Childhood :Mark Rothko was born in Dvinsk, Vitebsk...
. The shape and design of the chapel was largely influenced by the artist.
In 1964 Rothko was commissioned by John and Dominique de Menil (also founders of the nearby
Menil CollectionThe Menil Collection, located in Houston, Texas, United States, is a museum that houses the private art collection of founders Jean and Dominique de Ménil. Dominique was an heir to the Schlumberger oil-drilling fortune, and Jean The Menil Collection, located in Houston, Texas, United States, is a...
) to create a meditative space filled with his paintings.
The
Rothko Chapel is a non-denominational
chapelA chapel is a building used as a place for fellowship and of worship for Christians. It may be attached to an institution such as a large church, a college, a hospital, a palace, a prison or a cemetery, or may be an entirely free-standing building, sometimes with its own grounds...
in
Houston, TexasHouston is the fourth-largest city in the United States and the largest city within the state of Texas. As of the 2008 U.S. Census estimate, the city has a population of 2.2 million within an area of 600 square miles . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of...
founded by John and
Dominique de MenilDominique de Ménil was a French-American art collector and museum founder who was an heiress to the Schlumberger Limited oil-equipment fortune.-Life:...
. The interior serves not only as a chapel, but also as a major work of modern art. On its walls are fourteen black but color hued paintings by
Mark RothkoMark Rothko, born Marcus Rothkowitz , was a Latvian-born American painter and printmaker. He is classified as an abstract expressionist, although he himself rejected this label, and even resisted the classification as an "abstract painter".- Childhood :Mark Rothko was born in Dvinsk, Vitebsk...
. The shape and design of the chapel was largely influenced by the artist.
In 1964 Rothko was commissioned by John and Dominique de Menil (also founders of the nearby
Menil CollectionThe Menil Collection, located in Houston, Texas, United States, is a museum that houses the private art collection of founders Jean and Dominique de Ménil. Dominique was an heir to the Schlumberger oil-drilling fortune, and Jean The Menil Collection, located in Houston, Texas, United States, is a...
) to create a meditative space filled with his paintings. The works are site-specific, one of the requirements of the program. As Rothko was given creative license on the design of the structure, he clashed with the project's original architect,
Philip JohnsonPhilip Cortelyou Johnson was an influential American architect. With his thick, round-framed glasses, Johnson was the most recognizable figure in American architecture for decades....
over the plans for the chapel. The plans went through several revisions and architects. Rothko continued to work first with Howard Barnstone and then with Eugene Aubry, but ultimately he did not live to see the chapel's completion in 1971. After a long struggle with depression, Rothko committed suicide in his New York studio on February 25, 1970.
A distinctive sculpture by
Barnett NewmanBarnett Newman was an American artist. He is seen as one of the major figures in abstract expressionism and one of the foremost of the color field painters.-Youth:...
,
Broken ObeliskBroken Obelisk is a sculpture by Barnett Newman completed in 1963. It is the largest and best known among his six sculptures.A version of the sculpture is in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, while two others are permanently installed in Red Square on the campus of the...
, 1963-1967, stands in front of the chapel. The sculpture sits in a reflecting pool designed by Philip Johnson and it is dedicated to the late
Martin Luther King, Jr.Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist and prominent leader in the African-American civil rights movement. His main legacy was to secure progress on civil rights in the United States and he is frequently referenced as a human rights icon today. King is recognized as a martyr...
On September 16, 2000 the Rothko Chapel was placed on the
National Register of Historic PlacesThe National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
One of
Morton FeldmanMorton Feldman was an American composer, born in New York City.A major figure in 20th century music, Feldman was a pioneer of indeterminate music, a development associated with the experimental New York School of composers also including John Cage, Christian Wolff, and Earle Brown...
's best known pieces of music was inspired by and written to be performed in the chapel — it too is called
Rothko Chapel (1971). The musician
Peter GabrielPeter Brian Gabriel is an English musician and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career. More recently he has focused on producing and promoting world music and pioneering...
named the song
Fourteen Black PaintingsUs is the sixth studio album by British rock musician Peter Gabriel, originally released in 1992. It was remastered, with most of Gabriel's catalogue, in 2002...
after his experience in the chapel.
http://people.albion.edu/elf11/dp/songmean.htm Independent singer-songwriter
David DonderoDavid Dondero is a singer-songwriter who currently is on the Team Love Records label. Born in Duluth, Minnesota, June 24, 1969, Dondero started playing music in 1979 as a drummer. He has toured with such acts as Against Me!, Bright Eyes, Tilly and the Wall, Spoon, and Willy Mason. His former...
also has an ode to the site titled
Rothko Chapel (2007).
External links