Two Seated Female Figures with Hats, Right Figure in Profile to Left 

Mark Rothko created this ink drawing, "Two Seated Female Figures with Hats, Right Figure in Profile to Left," on paper. Observe how Rothko's use of line and form conveys a sense of psychological presence. The figures, rendered with stark, economical strokes, appear less as portraits and more as studies in shape and structure. The hats atop their heads are heavily shaded. Consider the structuralist concept of binary oppositions. The contrast between the figure facing forward and the one in profile may hint at the multifaceted nature of identity, suggesting the self is both a public presentation and a private interiority. The composition challenges conventional portraiture by fragmenting the subjects, destabilizing fixed meanings. Ultimately, the power of this drawing lies not in its representational accuracy but in how Rothko employs the formal qualities of line and shape to probe the deeper structures of perception and identity. It invites us to question how meaning is constructed.