Born in Okayama prefecture, Japan in 1984. Matsui graduated with a BFA in painting from Tama Art University in 2008, after studying abroad at the University School of Art & Design Helsinki (Finland) in 2006. The artist then completed a master’s degree in oil painting at Tokyo University of the Arts in 2010. From 2012 to 2013, Matsui received sponsorship under the Agency of Cultural Affairs’ 2012 Program of Overseas Study for Upcoming Artists for a residency at the Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Germany. She marked a sensational debut by winning the Gold Prize for her early masterpiece “I Love Ebi-Chili!” (I love chili shrimps!) at “GEISAI#6,” an event organized by Takashi Murakami. Matsui is known for works using the motif of the axolotl, which could perhaps be described as representing the artist herself, in addition to the enormous self-portraits that have been a constant feature of her practice. She works in a wide range of media outside of painting, including sculpture and installation. Since the beginning of her career, she has exhibited frequently both in Japan and overseas, including participation in the exhibition “J’en rêve” at the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain (Paris) in 2005, while still a student, the solo exhibitions “Sunrise Erina” at the Ohara Museum of Art (Okayama) in 2012, and “Reiwa Otogi zo-shi Momotaro KAMISHI by Erina Matsui” at the Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art in 2020. Works by the artist are held in prominent contemporary art collections in Japan and around the world, such as the Takamatsu Art Museum, the Ohara Museum of Art, the Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art, the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, and the Moleskine Foundation Collection.