Erin Rothstein
Erin Rothstein is a Canadian artist, born in Montreal and currently living and working in Toronto. Her paintings are centred around food and fashion, using a Minimalist aesthetic to enhance the "Pop-Culture" allure of her signature Hyperreal technique.
In her series, “The Tasting Room,” Rothstein channels her inner foodie:
“I paint food because I love everything that has to do with food-culture,” Rothstein explains. “You’ll often find me cooking and eating, all the while engrossed in a total culinary experience of smells, tastes, and aesthetics. The foods I paint are universally relatable. They trigger people’s emotions on a very primal level, making them happy, hungry, excited, and nostalgic.”
In her most recent series, "Un-fancy," Rothstein showcases Hyperreal paintings of mainstream urban fashion staples, capturing the essence of these objects and what they mean to us. Much like her paintings from the "Tasting Room" series, these pieces drum up feelings of nostalgia, excitement, comfort, and happiness. They underline the beautiful and lasting nature of the “un-fancy” life.
Rothstein has carved out a new space for herself within the context of today’s art market, combining academic techniques with innovative subjects and compositions, in order to showcase Hyperrealism as a whimsical and fresh-faced style.
Rothstein holds a BFA from Concordia University, where she specialized in painting and drawing. She also holds an MA from The University of Western Ontario, where she studied in detail the evolution of décor in modern art. Her work has received a Scotiabank Viewers Choice Award, as well as support from the Ontario Arts Council. This series has also received recognition in The Huffington Post, The National Post, Architectural Digest, and Toronto Life. Rothstein’s work is held in major collections including Google and McGill University.
Erin’s interdisciplinary experience in the arts and commitment to the realm of contemporary aesthetics lends itself to projects that are highly nuanced and refreshingly innovative.
Q & A
WITH ERIN
Q: I love everything! How do I choose?
A: Go. With. Your. Gut! Always choose the piece(s) that make you the absolute happiest on a gut level. My work tends to go quickly, so if you see something you love… well, you know.
Q: What is my art "about"?
A: It’s about whatever it means to the viewer. To me, the connection between viewer and artwork is EVERYTHING.
My art is happy. It’s nostalgic. It’s light. It’s nuanced. It’s incredibly real, and yet incredibly surreal. It’s not the kind of art you just walk by. It’s the kind of art that sparks conversation… the kind of art you marvel at.
My Team
I am powered by an AMAZING team of superhumans, helping me behind the scenes. They are the reason that I am able to focus on my artwork, and they constantly inspire me to test the limits of my own creative output. They are my village, my family.