Dylan Anthony Roworth (b. 1990, St. Catharines, Ontario) is a Toronto-based artist known for his evocative oil paintings that blend personal narrative with the mythos of the American West. A graduate of Sheridan College with a Visual Creative Arts Diploma and OCAD University with a BFA in Drawing and Painting, Roworth's work explores themes of loneliness, searching, and romanticism through the recurring figure of the cowboy.
Growing up as the son of a single truck-driving father and grappling with the absence of his Native American mother from California, Roworth's art delves into a complex duality. His fascination with the idealized West-a landscape rich in nostalgia and complexity-fuels his exploration of identity and belonging. Inspired by the Greek god Dionysus, Roworth's cowboy character navigates themes of loss, rebirth, and creative destruction, shedding old identities to emerge anew.
Roworth's work is marked by humor reminiscent of country music, illuminating darker emotions tied to his mother's absence due to drug abuse and hereditary trauma. Drawing from Greek mythology, eschatology, and the symbolism of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and Rococo painters, he reimagines traditional Western tropes into poignant narratives that echo his personal history.
His achievements include winning the Kenwood Design Competition at Toronto's Interior Design Show and completing commercial projects for hotels in Los Angeles, Singapore, and Boston. Recently featured in Architectural Digest, Roworth continues to push boundaries in his exploration of identity, memory, and the complexities of the human experience, inviting viewers to engage with the layered narratives of his compelling pastoral scenes.