The landmark Rothko Chapel in Houston, Texas, reopened to the public on Tuesday after closing in July due to hurricane damage.
The church features 14 large paintings by Color Field abstract artists, as well as monumental sculptures by American abstract artist Barnett Newman broken obelisk (1963-67) Outside. It was commissioned in 1964 by John de Menil and Dominique de Menil, powerful collectors in the art world, and opened in 1971.
Groundbreaking for the church expansion was announced in April and is expected to take two years to complete.
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However, the medieval building was damaged by Cyclone Beryl in July, which devastated the area and closed the church indefinitely. A team of art conservators and engineers repaired the damage to the walls and ceilings, as well as four (of fourteen in total) of damaged Mark Rothko paintings in the chapel; the canvases were moved off-site and maintained by Whitten & Proctor Fine Art Conservation Make repairs.
“Since the storm, our focus has been on completely repairing the building, repairing damaged panels and reopening the building so that the public can once again access this beloved space for contemplation and meditation,” David Leslie, Rose Cochrane’s executive director explained in a statement.
He added: “Getting to this point has been a real community effort involving a fantastic team of art conservators, scientists, art handlers, volunteers, community partners and church staff and we are absolutely delighted to be able to celebrate the holiday season reopened before.”
The Rothko Chapel is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is considered a meditative landmark.
