Artist: Anne Rothenstein

Anne Rothenstein is a fascinating artist who started painting relatively late in life and has become one of our most highly regarded contemporary artists who has exhibited regularly in London since 1991.

We recall seeing her work in the RA Summer exhibitions in recent years and commenting on the dramatic impact her large oil on boards have on a room . She is an elected RWA member and has her work included in the Fry Gallery collection of work by Great Bardfield artists .

Anne is the daughter of Michael Rothenstein and Duffy Ayres, so comes from a dynasty of artists where in her childhood she was surrounded by art without having any particular formal training. She went away to boarding school and very much liked her own company rather than that of others, taking up the piano as it was a place away from others. Even today Anne enjoys locking herself away in her studio painting on her own and in her own way.

Anne Rothenstein’s figures are often androgynous and she says that often she is unsure if a particular figure is a man or woman believing that unless there is a reason for them to have a particular gender then it does not matter to her enjoys the ambiguity and likes not knowing . She has in the past also talked about having no sense of belonging in anyway and ‘the now’ being the all important time .

We find her work thought provoking and stylised and it clearly resonates with a young audience so is set to be collected in the coming years. She has recently been exhibited in the US and this expose will continue to increase her popularity with contemporary collectors.

Her grandfather was William Rothenstein , who ran the Royal College of Art and served as an official British war artist. Her uncle , John was director of the Tate Gallery and her brother Julian, is a designer and founder of Redstone Press.

After working for ten years as an actor she has painted full time since 1982 and now regularly designs covers for the London Review of Books.