Mark Rothko - Art Market

Art Market

In early November 2005 Rothko's 1953 oil on canvas painting, Homage to Matisse, broke the record selling price of any post-war painting at a public auction, at US$ 22.5 million.

In May 2007 Rothko's 1950 painting White Center (Yellow, Pink and Lavender on Rose), broke this record again, selling at US$ 72.8 million at Sotheby's New York. The painting was sold by philanthropist David Rockefeller, who attended the auction.

In May 2011 Christie's auctions sold a previously unknown Rothko painting, accounting for the work as #836. The work was added to the existing Rothko catalog of 835 works after expert authentication. The newly discovered painting, Untitled, #17, created in 1961, came to light when a private collector put it up for sale, claiming he bought it directly from the artist. A seven-foot-tall oil on canvas in red and pink on an ochre background, the painting opened with a house bid at US$ 13 million and sold for US$ 30 million, plus sellers and buyers fees (US$ 33 million, all inclusive).

In May 2012 Rothko's 1961 painting Orange, Red, Yellow (#693 in Anfam's catalogue raisonné) was sold by Christie's, New York, for US$ 86.9 million, setting a new nominal-value record for a post-war painting at a public auction. The painting had formerly been in the collection of abstract expressionism built up by David and Gerry Pincus.