Tamar Black Rotchin
TAMAR BLACK ROTCHIN
Artist Profile
Hi Tamar, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
Hi! I’m eighteen years old, studying Studio Arts at Dawson College.
If you are enrolled in an arts program, how do you like it? What are some challenges that you face?
I’m not crazy about the program. Having done art my entire life, I am
set in my ways about the kind of art that I like to do and the way that I
like to do it. In the program, they really focus on developing
techniques and adherence to guidelines.
How would you personally describe your style of art?
I like to think that my art style can be described as morbid caricatures. My style has a purpose. I like to depict the unconventional, the abnormal and the ugly as art that can be considered beautiful. My style stems from a fascination with humans beings in all their natural and flawed glory. I find art is often used to beautify and conceal the imperfections of reality, and especially in the social media age, we are predisposed to reject faults, and instead pretend that we are all the ideal projections of ourselves that we display on our Instagram pages. Yet, I really do find that the reality that the world is imperfect and that fact should be embraced in art. There’s beauty in that.
Was there any point in your life where you saw yourself embracing this style, or was it naturally how you started?
Art has deep roots in my family, so I was drawing from a very young age. When I was around 11 or 12, I would fill books upon books with characters that I created, each with a backstory and their own unique life. I would say that when I was about 15 I began to spend more time doodling in my room, and started to realize that the art I was mindlessly sketching were these freaky, dismal, yet intriguing people. That was the point when I began to embrace it. As I evolved and matured as an individual, my style simultaneously became more defined, and I grew to be more assured in my techniques and ideas. It took a while to embrace the dark and unconventional.
In particular, can you describe your process and inspiration in making the graphic behind the collaboration T-Shirt?
I immediately decided to take a satirical approach for the collaboration T-Shirt. I wanted to use this opportunity to subtly address an important social issue. I decided to draw a rather “homely” or conventionally “unattractive” girl who is reflecting upon the fact that she has just realized that being attractive is what sells. This is a commentary on the reality of a society that rewards those who fit the mold of what is considered to be beautiful. We have built industries that revolve solely around picking at the insecurities of girls and teaching them to idolize those who offer physical beauty to the world. Ironically enough, the girl I drew on the shirt would probably not be seen as pretty, yet as a design, she is appealing and is being sold.
How does it feel to see your art come to life as something that you can wear?
It is surreal! I’m pleased that these intimate creations, a part of me, are worn and appreciated by others! It’s very gratifying to think that my art can speak to others.
What aspirations do you have for yourself as an artist in the future?
I have no idea what the future holds for me as an artist. Art is my one love and passion and I know that I want to be creative for the rest of my life. In a perfect world, I will get to the point where people can identify my style and eventually, maybe, I will have a brand that is my own.
