material will versus the artist's will

I have been looking at Mark Rothko's paintings in the layers of translucent and opaque paint layers that he would apply.  it would be pointless to try to copy his methods because of the secretive nature that he would work.  a lot of the time he would even refuse to let his studio assistants watch him paint.  his layering techniques would use different mediums that would shine or glow differently due to the way that the material filters or reflects light.  Rothko used materials outside of the standard materials used by artists and he would use traditional artist materials in non traditional ways.  he would modify the properties of oil paint to get the drying time, flow and colors that he was looking for.  he would use traditional resins, egg, glue and dammar resins that increase the viscosity of the paint so that the paint could be diluted without loosing their consistency or the quality of the color.  his process has also been difficult to figure out because the process differs from painting to painting.  Rothko also was constantly experimenting with the paint mixture and the order that he layered the paint.  I am not looking to paint like Rothko.  However, I am interested in how he used materials in such a way as not make them bend, but kept experimenting until he found the right material, the right combination, the right sequence that would say what he was thinking.  its not about bending the materials will to match mine, but trying to see where my will as the artist and the will of the material line up.

in my questioning of myself on the point of not trying to bend the material's will, I do look at the fact that I do use representation in my work at times.  is representing the figure in a few of my works me "bending" the material to my will? To make the material pretend to be flesh, or form or a person? I don't think so.  when I speak of not bending the will of the material, I feel that as long as the material is doing what...

as I am typing this I am not sure if I should call bullshit on myself right now.  experimenting with different ways of applying material, experimenting with different materials to see how they interact with each other, moving materials around on the surface in a specific gesture, painting around, on top of, against or with projection... I don't know if I can honestly say that I am not "bending the will" of the materials.  but I can't say either that it is completely my will that I am painting from.  there is this dance between the will of the material and the will of the artist that my work exists in.  in that space is where I am making decisions and the the material tells me what it is willing to do or not do.   I think that this is why I am enjoying the introduction of the projected image onto the work.  let the materials get to be honestly what they are while the photograph and light get to do what they do.