The Brattleboro Museum & Art Center has selected Lia Rothstein of Hanover, NH, as its 2023 Climate Change Artist in Residence. A professional photographer and artist for more than 40 years, Rothstein currently centers her work around issues of fragility and transience.
During a residency in Iceland in 2012, Rothstein traveled around the country and observed firsthand its diminishing glaciers, heightening her awareness of the effects of climate change on our fragile environment. The search for biodegradable materials with sculptural potential recently led her to experiment with bioplastics. Unlike traditional plastics, bioplastics are obtained from renewable resources, and many are biodegradable.
“The work Lia Rothstein is doing with bioplastics struck us as incredibly creative, interesting and hopeful,” said BMAC Director of Exhibitions Sarah Freeman. “We are delighted that she will be our 2023 BMAC Climate Change Artist in Residence.”
The residency comes with a $6,000 stipend. The nature of the residency is flexible and is tailored to serve the needs of the selected artist.
“As artists, I think we have a responsibility to be thoughtful about the materials we use in our work, to creatively explore materials that can have less impact on our environment, and to be responsible consumers of whatever art materials we use to express our ideas," Rothstein said. “During my residency, I will continue to grow, learn and stretch in my search for materials to express my ideas using sustainable and biodegradable materials that, rather than contributing to the advancement of climate change, seek to help be part of a movement to slow and reduce the impacts of unnecessary waste and pollution in our fragile ecosystems.”
Rothstein has taught digital photography and imaging and a variety of art processes in colleges and art centers throughout New England and has worked as a photographic specialist for Dartmouth College. She has also been a regular teacher and presenter at the annual International Encaustic Conference held in Provincetown, MA.
Her work has been exhibited in galleries and museums across the US and is in numerous private and public collections, including the Polaroid Permanent International Exhibition Photography Collection and the collections of John Hancock and the Radisson Group. She is a graduate of Boston University, where she also earned a Master of Fine Arts degree.
“Lia Rothstein is experimenting with bioplastics in fascinating ways,” BMAC Director Danny Lichtenfeld said. “As a lifelong teacher, Lia is interested in using her BMAC residency to offer workshops, give talks, work with schools and students, and connect with other artists and researchers who are engaging with climate change. We look forward to facilitating all that and more.”