The Rothko Chapel

Heard about this joint for awhile now. Decided to drop in to see what all the fuss is about. Understandably a special place for Rothko fans but to the casual art admirer its just doesn’t hold that much appeal. One room facility with giant canvases on 6 or so walls. Benches in a circular arrangement in the middle of the room and several cushions on the floor for meditating on. Room is lit by natural light filtered in through the center of the room but the atmosphere is dark and moody. The Rothkos on display match the mood of the room (purples, blacks, greys) but are an accurate representation of the way the artist liked to display his paintings (extremely large canvases that extend floor to ceiling). Admission is free and always a decent crowd on weekends. Despite the crowd, it’s perfectly silent. A variety of religious texts are available on a bench in the anteroom for use during your visit. My personal observation was that more people were there for meditating/​praying/​enjoying a serene environment than for the actual art or viewing of art. You’ll definitely get a quasi-​religious vibe from this place. Nice pyramid sculpture outside but the pond was drained during my visit which made it seem underwhelming. It fits well in this art/​museum neighborhood but I think you are better off walking one block over to the Menil Collection (free, multiple galleries including a brighter work by Rothko).

The bathroom smelled better than the chapel! What are you supposed to be doing in here it’s just a bunch of black walls. Some modern art I just don’t get.

This is truly a beautiful and tranquil place in a busy and industrious city. Houston is very utilitarian and often unconcerned with the art of aesthetics. The Chapel is extraordinary.

Wow, this place was beautiful and stunning.
I’ve come here now multiple times and different times and weather. The chapel becomes eerily lit during the day and then really somber and quiet as the day progresses.
Don’t be distracted by some of the people who seem weird. They are having their own spiritual experience! Ignore them and just look into the Rothko paintings. With the dim lighting, you can barely make out where one color ends and another begins. The paintings are on a grand scale.
While a short experience, I would say it’s definitely very special and something to take visiting friends to for sure.

The reflecting pool is the only the worth it, it truly helps you relax and it’s pretty and simple. The parking is difficult. The chapel is small. This is a place to mediate and give you peace. The art is here is dark. It’s free admission. I really enjoy the fact that it’s no religion or a you make it your own religion.

I’m not a huge Rothko fan, but the Chapel is an interesting experience for people of any religious or spiritual leanings! Worth a visit to experience it for yourself!

I drove straight from Lake Charles, LA to Houston last weekend, and the Rothko Chapel was my specific destination. And after a drive like that, during a post-​hurricane flooded weekend, my soul needed the tending.
Indeed, it was raining the proverbial buckets by the time I pulled up to the chapel, and I saw from the look of the roads that I’d pretty much have the chapel to myself. I wandered in and entered the room itself, which was bathed in reflections of the external grey lighting, making the room even more atmospheric.
I should mention here that I am (1) a great admirer of Rothko and (2) filled with a mythological sense of «other» so this chapel is clearly a place for me. Not that I think your take on religion is a determining factor in your appreciation of the room. I mean, you can look at the paintings as the Nietzschean Void for that matter. The beauty and brilliance of the paintings to me is the ability to look into them and interpret for yourself what they are trying to tell you. Which is really what a lot of art tries to do, y’know? But for my experience: I gave myself a chance to breathe in the space and take up the spirit of the room; then I sat facing the triptych and prayed my thoughts away; then having cleared my mind, I got on the floor and meditated in the serenity of no mind; and following that, I concluded with looking at the arrangement of the room and noting the differences in the «black» paintings. I was there for about 45 minutes, and they were 45 very quiet minutes with almost no other people and the ambient drone of the waters washing over the chapel. It was an experience.
In retrospect, I’m really glad it was raining as hard as it was, because it gave a sense of solitude that might not have been as easy to attain otherwise. But no matter what, it was beautiful contemplative scene and about as moving of an art experience as one could hope to have.

This chapel is alright. It’s basically a brick building with one room inside, and there are black panels on the wall. The ceiling has a hole with some light coming through, and the room has a lot of benches for people to sit. It’s not pertaining to any particular religion, and as long as you believe that there is a higher power, you can attend. It’s pretty peaceful I guess. The outside decoration is more interesting; there’s a pool with this pyramid on top of which there’s a structure that looks like a pencil. It’s alright.

Since I’ve been visiting Houston trying to figure out my life, I’ve discovered this place next to my accommodations and have been coming sporadically to meditate and think about my next steps in life. When you enter you have to sign in each time (it can get annoying if there are lots of people in front of you, if someone doesn’t know how to sign in or has an intelligence below that of a toaster on occasion). There is a guestbook in the corner if you want to write a longer message. It’s a non-​denominational chapel and there are holy books from major religions on a bench if you choose to read them while you are there. Depending on the day you go, the benches will be arranged in a certain manner. I’ve noticed that during the week they are arranged in a circular pattern and on Sunday it was facing forward like church pews. There are cushions and a mat for people who want to sit down and meditate. These cushions are in the front of the chapel and during the week there is one in the middle with sunlight from the top of the chapel shining down on you. The interior is sparse with abstract art. I suppose it’s to set a mood and not distract you from your meditations.
I’ve had a pleasant experience meditating and had some revelations in this serene environment. You do hear footsteps but that doesn’t really bother me. However please do not bring your noisy kids in here.
DO NOT BRING YOUR KIDS IN HERE!!!
DO NOT BRING YOUR KIDS IN HERE!!!
DO NOT BRING YOUR KIDS IN HERE!!!
One Jarboni decided to do that and it disrupted everyone’s experience. He hung around for 10 minutes instead of going in and out. The staff watching over the area didn’t do anything because they were probably volunteers and not paid enough to be here. It disrupted my experience that day and I would give that day a 1 star if I didn’t attend that place at different times. Overall, I would say it’s a nice place to meditate and reflect if everyone around you is pleasant and respectful and there are no noisy kids who obviously belong on a playground.

This small building and its contents have been lathered with superlatives since it opened to the public in 1971. It was meant as a neutral space. The list of famous people who have visited is lengthy. It seems to be a destination for pilgrims as well as curious visitors.
When I have the chance to walk the streets of this neighborhood, I always visit this chapel and yet, as much as I appreciate the oeuvre of Mark Rothko, this room leaves me cold. My religiosity left me before I reached my teens and my personal spirituality finds inspiration elsewhere so, perhaps, the function of this room is not meant for me. I always thought it was the black canvasses that alienated me. However, on this visit, I realized that it’s the building itself that pushes me away.
For me, this building is not uplifting; rather, it’s a bunker that weighs me down. Some will say that I just don’t get it. Well, that’s insulting, really, and it dismisses the intangible aspects of art that can’t be explained. People don’t get art or not get it: it’s a fluid not finite experience. All art is a reflection of humanity, so it’s not as simple as mastering a work of art then moving onto the next one.
On the day that I visited, there were a number of people in the room. One seated woman seemed to be meditating as she rocked back-​and-​forth ever so slightly, others sat at the end of the long benches staring at the dark canvasses as if they were trying to elicit something from them. A few stood wondering what this room was all about.
Personally, I find solace and inspiration outside at the Barnett Newman obelisk and nearby in the small building that houses a number of Cy Twombly’s works. I don’t know why I like Cy Twombly — detractors will say it’s so much scribbling after all — but I do.

If you like to meditate and seek a serene space, the Rothko Chapel is for you. If you’re looking for a gallery filled with pieces that you would hang inside your beach house bathroom, keep on walking.
The inside is Spartan… Rough cement, wood benches and a few yoga balls for those who partake. On the walls of the chapel are flat, nuanced canvases which are the works of Mark Rothko himself.
The coldness and depth of the flat canvases will suck you in, but like being a Jedi, be wary of the dark side. Poking fun at the relative «lack of conventional art» is for haters. Hate leads to anger. Anger leads to fear. Fear is the path to the dark side.
Bring your tired, soul and find spiritual nourishment and deep calm at the Rothko Chapel.

SSSSSHHHHHHHHHut up. No talking. Just take in the silence. This is the quietest most serene place that is open to all beliefs or lack of beliefs to go in and just be. There is also giant artwork on the walls to get lost in.

Spirituality facilitated by the great Mark Rothko…
It’s free. But that’s not even the best part of the experience. The Rothko Chapel is so simple, yet so complex. An octagonal structure graced with 14 of Rothko’s paintings provides a quiet, meditative place for people of all faiths to gather and contemplate, pray, or just sit in shattering silence.
Get away from all the technological buzz and daily grind of the outside world and stop at the Chapel for introspection. The Chapel provides texts of all different faiths, ranging from the Bible to the Daodeching. Even if you are not a religious person, you’ll be able to find peace and quiet inside this space. So drop by this amazing place for an experience that can hardly be described by words.

The Rothko Chapel is such a peaceful and reflective place to come and mediate or pray. The Chapel is open to all denominations and offers texts for use while in the Chapel. I absolutely love that there is a place like this where you can go and disconnect from technology and sit and reflect. The atmosphere is so serene and a beautiful place to visit.

As others have said, your experience at the Rothko Chapel depends entirely on who you are and what you’re hoping to get out of it. In either case, it’s worth a visit.
Case 1: You’re not into meditation and aren’t going for the zen experience. You walk in, check out the paintings, sit down and think for a few minutes, and walk out. You have a look at Barnett Newman’s Broken Obelisk and the reflecting pool which surrounds it, probably take a photo, and move on.
Case 2: You’re super into meditation and go to the Rothko Chapel for what I imagine is an exceptional spiritual experience. I say «for what I imagine is» because this case doesn’t apply to me, so I can’t really speak to it.
If you’re reading Case 1 and are not persuaded to check it out, here’s why you ought to reevaluate: it’s a five minute walk through a lovely park to the Menil Collection, which is a spectacular free art museum. Furthermore, once inside the Menil Collection, you can check out the Mark Rothko permanent exhibit which will help you to better understand why the Rothko Chapel is as significant as it is, and help you learn more about the artist himself. The Rothko Chapel by itself isn’t particularly appealing to someone not looking for a zen moment, but given its proximity to the Menil Collection — which helps illuminate the art and meaning behind the Rothko Chapel — you should still visit.
3 stars because without the Menil Collection I don’t think the average visitor would appreciate it nearly as much. Again, it is free and worth visiting, though.

Worth a trip even if ymmv
Yes, it is worth visiting. at least for the Menil’s thoughtful collection of sculptures, open spaces, architecture, and art pieces all within a frisbee toss from the chapel. as for the chapel itself, it seems like there are three kinds of reactions:
1. you love meditation, and this space may bring you close to tears
2. you could make a rothko in 10 seconds in your garage and don’t get it, or
3. you appreciate rothko and your experience will vary widely depending on the light and people inside during your visit
entering the building, one enters a dark, low ceilinged anteroom. your eyes adjust to the dim light and you are asked to sign in. from there you are released into the spacious meditation space filled with overhead natural light. unfortunately, for a space highlighting dark rothko paintings, the quality of light was uncontrollably wrong on the day i visited. the light comes from a single overhead source that, while blocked by an intermediary piece, still fails to diffuse light properly. harsh light was strong enough to make me squint and washed the canvasses with glare. trying to view some of rothko’s darkest work in that environment was like trying to discern an interrogator’s hair patterns with a spotlight in your eyes. i tried all manner of angles and distances. i came back a few hours later hoping the light would be better, but it wasn’t.
unfortunately, unlike some of the more legendary art spaces that inpire quiet and awe, the chapel’s changing light doesn’t make for a variety of positive experiences. i think it is more binary – making for either decent light or horrible light to view the black/​purple rothkos. on my day, i could not imagine a more tragic and unintended way to view his work within the clumsy design of that building.
if you want to see natural light as it should be in an art space, go next door and see any of the Menil buildings designed by Renzo Piano. it’s almost like Piano is purposefully contrasting his playful, spacious, and elegant use of natural light against the chapel’s novice attempt. it’s not a fair fight. or if you want a space that stirs awe and silence innately, visit the vietnam memorial (lin) in DC or the Kamppi chapel in Finland.
It’s easy to blame the architecture alone. But in this case, the installation is supposed to be the blending of noble patronage, building design, and artist. it doesn’t quite work like that. maybe imagine if rothko had painted from the start within the chapel, rather than importing his works from his NYC studio, how different the art would have turned out. I’m not saying Rothko, at the height of his fame would have had the time to do that, but it does highlight how the chapel might not work for me. And maybe that’s why so many people enter, then leave more confused than inspired.

We walked in and walked right out. It was so dark and gloomy in there. The fact that it was dead silent didn’t help. There’s not really anything to do, but there was still a group of about 15 people sitting on benches in there reflecting on life or whatever.
This place definitely depends on your interests. I personally would much rather spend my day sitting outside at the Menil Park.

I didn’t know what to expect walking in. The exterior of the building is very unassuming. The grounds are nice with the iron sculpture out front. After signing in at the front desk you walk into a room that contains a few benches and you are looking at 4 walls with large black paintings of nothing. It is quiet inside like a church. I guess you can go here to meditate but there isn’t anything religious about this place therefore I am not sure why it is called a chapel.
For out of towner’s doing the tourism thing I think you can skip this even though it is free. Parking can be tough as only street parking is available. You can also park in the Menil parking lot on West Alabama about two short blocks away.
I spent 5 minutes inside which took me longer to park. I guess if you like contemporary «art» you might like this place. For me it is now been there, done that.,

So I maybe wrote one of my college essays abt how a Rothko at the National Gallery made me cry. And I was serious. In other words, I’m kind of the prime customer for the Rothko Chapel — but the works here are all of his massive dark, black-​looking canvases, which I don’t find particularly moving.
Was quite crowded when we went — several people were meditating in front of the pieces — and many more milling around, though it remains hushed. A small space, visiting takes no more than 5m if you’re not looking to get zen about it.
Free admission — wouldn’t make a special trip, but if you’re down the street at the Menil Collection, wander down to see it to feel cultured and discuss the depth of blackness and how the subtle gradations of the color in the pieces make you realize how space is really infinite or something.

There are few places in Houston where the crowds disappear and inner serenity return. This chapel is that space — both inside and outside on its grounds. I just wish it were open all day.
Whether I need some time and space to myself or I’m meeting others, it’s a great place to remember why I love Houston.
If you have yet to visit, then you could wander over one day. It’s free!

En 1964 M. et Mme de Ménil passent une commande au peintre américain Mark Rothko de créer un espace de méditation. La chapelle né sera pas encore achevée à sa mort en 1970. De forme octogonale, la chapelle est ornée de 14 peintures noires qui donnent une atmosphère toute particulière (surtout si l’on se remémore la mort tragique du peintre). Rotkho changea fréquement d’architecture tout au long de sa construction ainsi les architectes Philip Johnson, Howard Barnstone, Eugene Aubry y contribuèrent. Ce monument est peu connu malgré le fait qu’il se trouve proche du Musée de la Ménil Collection dans le centre de Houston, Tx.