Anna Torma is a textile artist, who began to sew, knit, and crochet with her mother and grandmothers in her native Hungary. Since immigrating to Canada in 1988, Anna has continued to experiment with style and material, often combining several influences and media into playful, colorful, and meaningful work that has been showcased nationally and internationally.

All this was brought vividly to life at a talk given by the artist at the Merchant Warehouse in Woody Point this past Friday as part of Anna’s residency, sponsored by the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador and Creative Gros Morne.

Anna is an engaging and energetic speaker, who started her talk with the assertion that the collective experience of her life, work and travels had brought her to her current practice, and so she began with an overview of that life. With exuberance and passion Anna talked about her love of nature, gardening in particular, and her travels through Europe, describing her time studying medieval tapestries in France, as well as her upbringing in Hungary and her home in New Brunswick.

All this life experience is brought to bear on her work – large silkscreens and quilts that are playful, whimsical, and infused with her deep interest in our connection to the earth. Many of her works feature flowers and vegetation, intertwined with the human form; some of the most striking images in her talk featured anatomical shapes overlaid and combined with red roses and vines. She featured work done on large silk panels, a material that softens and diffuse her images and suggests a tone that is often at odds with the deep, metaphysical subject matter.

Vanitas 2, Hand embroidery and digital prints on silk

That Anna’s work is infused with a love of life and a playfulness was clearly demonstrated in the work she showed in her talk; works featured in exhibitions named ‘play’ or ‘bagatelles’, and incorporate objects such as paper dolls and children’s drawings.

Anna Torma gave a delightfully animated talk to a small but enthusiastic audience on Friday evening. This was a remarkable opportunity for local artists and the public who now have every reason to anticipate the next residency and artist willing to share their life and work with the communities of the area.

See more of Anna Torma’s work at: www.annatorma.com/

featured image: Play3, Hand embroidery and digital prints on silk