Tributes are pouring in from around the world for a Northampton, Massachusetts, artist and sculptor, praised for ambitious public art, who died suddenly this month.
Dave Rothstein was known for small acts of creativity, like carving intricate designs on fresh snow in his driveway, as well as big and dramatic efforts, such as a backyard igloo he turned into a speakeasy.
He was an internationally competitive snow sculptor, a skilled chalk artist, and a small-scale farmer who had been cultivating mint.
In 2023, Rothstein attempted to break a world record by rowing 40 miles on the Connecticut river inside a giant pumpkin. He attracted dozens of spectators in the hope of raising awareness about the watershed.
While Rothstein’s cause of death has not been made official, friends say he likely died from a heart attack or other medical event. He was 57.
Rothstein worked for years as an environmental lawyer on land conservation, including for the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife and Mass Audubon.
But he was best known for unconventional art collaborations and for supporting other artists.
Soren Mason Temple, of Florence, said Rothstein helped her come out of her shell as an artist. They met more than a decade ago at a weekly trivia game, and he convinced her they should work together on an art project: he would make a time-lapse film of her painting a picture, from beginning to end, over two days.
The short film became an instagram sensation, which Temple said was not unusual for Rothstein. After all, he once built a voting booth for chipmunks and filmed them using it.
“Every idea and project of his was so just joyful and delightful,” she said, “that anyone who came across it was like, ‘Oh my God, look at this amazing thing that this person is doing. Let's share it with everyone.’”
As much as Temple will deeply miss his support and camaraderie, she said she hopes to carry some of Rothstein’s artistic courage into her own work.
“I feel like he just made art all the time because he loves it but [also] because of how much he wants to let other people be made happy by it,” she said.
Most recently, Rothstein built a life-sized flying Volkswagen Beetle out of hay, on display at Park Hill Orchard in Easthampton, as part of its “Art in the Orchard” group exhibit.
“He brought an old 1962 Volkswagen bug to the farm, and he used it as a mold to make this hay sculpture,” recalls orchard co-owner Richard Braen, who was also a friend of Rothstein’s. “He worked on it – I don't know – dozens of evenings, welding and stuffing and getting it all together.”
Braen and orchard co-owner Alane Hartley first met Rothstein years ago through his love of donuts, which often showed up in his art. They asked him to be a consultant for the farm’s cider donut recipes and later leased land to him for his mint farming.
Hartley said Rothstein was dedicated to collaboration — artistic and other.
“He was always looking for places where he could work with others and do things with other people, and it was amazing,” she said. “He just thought that working with other people and being in community was really important. It brought him joy.”
Following news of his death, many of Rothstein’s friends and colleagues posted heartbroken messages on his Facebook page. They highlighted his compassion, his generosity, and his ability to make people feel seen and heard – in addition to his devotion to his cats.
Rothstein’s orchard exhibit – titled “Beetle in a Haystack” – has become a makeshift memorial, as people leave flowers and notes in remembrance. Braen said he hopes to assemble the keepsakes as an art project in Rothstein’s honor.
In the meantime, Braen is trying to keep Rothstein's rotating car sculpture intact, despite the recent winds.
“Hay sculptures are temporal,” Braen said, with a sigh.”I keep looking at it and just thinking – fly away, you know. Soar high, fly away.”
