Mark Rothko’s former NYC home re-lists for $9.5M



Only in New York could a single Gilded Age carriage house have ties to both the abstract painter Mark Rothko and the music legend Elvis Presley.

Now, the duplex where the late Rothko created his art at 155 E. 69th St. is back on the market for $9.5 million. That’s the same price the property asked last year with a different brokerage, as Gimme Shelter exclusively reported.

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But the listing comes with a catch. 

The famed artist Mark Rothko, who died in 1970 at age 66. Getty Images
The home is replete with elegant touches, such as a fireplace in this plush living area. Zoe Wetherall
A view of the grand layout. Zoe Wetherall
Fireplaces accent many areas inside. Zoe Wetherall

One family owns and raised their family in a five-bedroom duplex that’s now back on the market. A Japanese company owns the second half and operates a non-profit tea society foundation there, and has no plans to sell at the moment, said listing brokers Jeremy Stein and Jennifer Henson, of Sotheby’s International Realty. 

The Urasenke Tea Ceremony Society, according to its web material, is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and understanding the “Way of Tea” through lectures, demonstrations and classes.

Both the society and the duplex owners agreed when they bought the property that they would sell the building 50 years later if both parties didn’t want to hold on to it. That’s 12 years from now, Stein said.

“At the moment, the Japanese company doesn’t want to sell but they will have to in 12 years and the [$9.5 million] property will be worth a lot more at that time,” Stein said. He added that if someone bought the duplex now and lived in it, they’d make a large profit when they would sell the building, which is estimated at the moment to be worth around $24 million. 

At one point in the 1950s, the property was divided into music studios — and that’s how Presley fits in. It’s where he re-recorded the end of the soundtrack for his first film, “Love Me Tender.” 

Untitled, Mark Rothko, 1955, National Gallery of Art, Washington DC. Alamy Stock Photo
The kitchen has eat-in space. Zoe Wetherall
There’s room aplenty for a home office. Zoe Wetherall

“There are scenes of him [in 1956] signing autographs outside the house, and getting mobbed as he leaves in a car out of the garage,” Stein said. 

The home was built for a wealthy financier, James Stillman. The carriage house’s next chapter was recording studios and, after that, Rothko’s studio. 

Rothko often worked in the space and sometimes would cover the skylight with a parachute to create different types of light when he worked. The property is where Rothko created art for the famed, and non-denominational, Rothko Chapel in Houston. 

There are five delightful bedrooms inside. Zoe Wetherall
The landscaped roof deck comes with views of the neighborhood. Zoe Wetherall

This building is part of a “stable row,” one of the side streets between Lexington and Third avenues where wealthy Manhattanites kept their horses and carriages during the Gilded Age.

Built in 1884, the double-wide red brick structure was designed by architect William Schickel. It features arched windows, a large arched door, a one-car garage, a coveted curb cut and the enclosed garden.

The private residence, which can also be accessed through the garage, opens to a large living area with a working woodburning fireplace and a glass-enclosed terrace. There’s also a formal dining room, with access to the terrace, and an eat-in chef’s kitchen. There are three bedrooms on this level — one with a working fireplace — as well as three baths and a laundry room.

The upper level boasts an atrium at the top of the stairs with skylights. There’s also a main bedroom suite lined with windows that look out to the landscaped roof terrace, plus another working fireplace. There’s also a home office on this floor, along with a tea room, storage and access to the terrace.

Along with the stairs, there’s an elevator that goes from the top floor to the garage. In addition, a mezzanine level comes with additional storage and a wine cellar.


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