Mark George Tobey (1890–1976) was an American painter whose densely structured compositions, inspired by Asian calligraphy, were widely recognized throughout the United States and Europe. They resemble abstract expressionism, but the motives for his compositions differ philosophically from most Abstract Expressionists. Senior in age and experience, Tobey was a founder of the Northwest School - a friend and mentor, Tobey shared their interest in philosophy and Eastern religions. Similar to others of Northwest, Tobey was mostly self-taught after early studies at the Art Institute of Chicago. Tobey was an incessant traveler, visiting Mexico, Europe, Palestine, Israel, Turkey, Lebanon, China and Japan. Whether Tobey's all-over paintings, marked by oriental brushwork and calligraphic strokes, represented contemplation in action and their influence on Jackson Pollock's drip paintings has been left unanswered. His work is inspired by a personal belief system that suggests Oriental influences from Tobey's involvement in the Bahá'í Faith. Tobey is most notable for his creation of so-called "white writing" - an overlay of white or light-colored calligraphic symbols on an abstract field which is often itself composed of thousands of small and interwoven brush strokes, creating a vibratory space with dense tonalities.