Tuesday 11 June 2013

The new Mark Rothko Centre, Daugavpils. (part two) April 24th - The Opening

Shadows across the City

Mark Rothko was born in Dvinsk (then part of the Russian Empire) in 1903. He moved to the USA when he was ten. After the Russian revolution of 1917, Dvinsk became Daugavpils, the second largest city in the new Latvia.

I woke up to a glorious, panoramic view of the city square, and park beyond. The swirling clouds cast deep blue stripes across the buildings and trees, and I wished I had time to paint this dramatic scene. I went up to the 10th floor restaurant, hoping to find some of the other artists there, but there were no familiar faces. I took full advantage of the huge array of cooked food, and cereals, and drank several cups of coffee. I wrapped some slices of the tasty dark brown Rye bread for lunch later, and tried to work out which roads would take me to the Centre. I was told it would take about 30 minutes to walk there.

I stepped out of the hotel and into strong, icy breezes. It was a lovely walk. The sun illuminated the golds in the long, dead grasses, and gilded skeletal trees. Golds and copper contrasted against the brilliant blue patches of sky. As clouds raced across the sky, I wondered if the day would be spoilt by rain.

The Church behind the Hotel

It was quite a long walk, and I was shivering by the time I reached the old Fortress. The river Daugava was almost level with the surrounding land, and there was some flooding in places.


Flooding near the Fortress

The Rothko Centre is within the walls of the old Fortress. I arrived to find many technicians setting up stages and lighting for the performances, and people running everywhere. One of the organisers remembered me from the Residency, and took me to find Lars Strandh, one of my friends from the Residency. We found the other artists, and also my ex Tutor, Peter Griffin (who had an exhibition of his work in the Centre) and we all went for lunch in the Centre's restaurant. As usual, the soup was brilliant, and we had some chicken wrapped in cheese, and salad.

Left to Right: Kristina, Peter, Dillwyn and Lars

A conference was going on, but we spent the rest of the day looking around the Centre and catching up on our news. Then at about 5pm people began to gather outside the Centre, for the performance and speeches. I stood on the stairs that lead down from the second floor, to get a good view.



The Opening began with a performance of dance during which the dancers painted some stands with bright daubs of colour. 
 

After this, the speeches began. Both Kate Rothko, (below) and Christopher Rothko gave speeches about their father and the Centre. There was a sense that Mark Rothko's paintings had 'come home.'




Then everyone went inside, though there were so many people that security men let us in in small groups. The highlight in the Centre is the Rothko room, which contains 6 original paintings, loaned by his children.




The Mark Rothko Centre

This is me in one of the halls showcasing work by some of the resident artists. Unfortunately my work was not on show, though I was told later by one of the Directors that my large painting will be going to an International Arts Festival in Vietbsk, Belarus, in the summer



There was a wonderful buffet meal in the restaurant - but I was so busy taking photographs, and chatting, that by the time I went to the table, a few bread rolls remained! I met Kate Rothko, her friends, and several gallery Directors and Curators.




From left to Right: Lars, me, Marion, Rene.

At about 8pm, a friend called me outside to see the concert, which was fantastic - a Finnish accordian player - and the Centre was beautifully spotlit all around



It was a great evening, and I walked back to the city centre with Lars and two of the Committee members, under a full moon, near 11.30pm

The Moon over the Centre
(click on images for larger view)





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