Esra Rotthoff, a Berlin-born photographer, visual artist, and live illustrator, breaks the boundaries between portraiture, performance art, and live drawing. Her work seamlessly moves between staged visual narratives and real-time creation, transforming both subjects and environments into deeply immersive experiences. Whether capturing moments through her lens or drawing with ink and brush at live events, Rotthoff brings out the raw energy of human connection, using her art to reflect the essence of the people and places she encounters.

For over a decade, Rotthoff has been the creative director for various cultural institutions, such as the Gorki Theatre, where she has developed numerous visual campaigns. She has worked for many years with the Jewish Film Festival and various projects for Staatsoperette, crafting visual languages that reflect the political and social themes embedded in these cultural projects. Her passion lies in developing new ways to communicate these complex issues visually, engaging with topics that go beyond the surface and provoke thought and reflection.

Her outstanding contributions to the arts have been recognized with numerous awards, including the Canon Professional Award, Red Dot Award, and the German Design Award, among others. Additionally, she has been a proud member of the Directors Club in Germany for several years, further cementing her influence and leadership within the creative industry.

Her live drawing project, Drawing Alive, engages audiences in real-time, where she creates vivid, ink-based illustrations that merge abstraction and figuration. Using brushstrokes and high-pigmented watercolors, her drawings capture the spontaneity and emotion of each moment. This project bridges traditional art with contemporary event culture, turning audiences into participants of a creative process where art unfolds before their eyes. Whether at festivals or intimate gatherings, her live drawings become lasting records of the atmosphere, the people, and the stories she captures.

Rotthoff is known for her cinematic portraits, rich in texture, vibrant in color, and imbued with a theatrical quality. Her collaborations with institutions like the Gorki Theatre and explorations of cultural identity in projects like Almanci reveal her deep engagement with themes of identity and individuality. Her work speaks to the performative nature of human existence, capturing the complex relationship between self-expression and cultural belonging.

Her art transcends borders, with exhibitions and live projects taking place internationally, from Europe to diverse locations across the globe. Through her multidisciplinary approach, Rotthoff redefines contemporary photography and live illustration, offering not just an image, but an experience of shared creation.