A 1957 masterpiece by American abstract expressionist Mark Rothko will hang in the Ipswich Art Gallery for two years on loan from the National Gallery of Australia.

Titled 1957 #20, the work is more than two metres high, nearly two metres wide, and depicts a composition in red, brown and black.

The Rothko is on loan as part of the federal government’s Sharing the National Collection program and is valued at $116 million.

Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding described getting the work as “an amazing coup”.

“It’s a great initiative of the Australian government to allow these pieces to be shared nationally rather than just being in Canberra. It’s a great way for all Australians to get better connected with the collection that we have,” she said.

Representing an important shift in the Latvian-born artist’s work towards fewer and darker colours, the painting captures Rothko’s famous style of soft-edged rectangular forms that seem to float above the canvas.

Ipswich Art Gallery director Claire Sourgnes said Rothko’s paintings were admired for their ability to transcend cultural and linguistic barriers.

“The intense, contemplative colour fields evoke a wide range of human emotions – joy, sorrow, serenity, anxiety – and encourage viewers to engage with their own inner experiences,” she said.