Fantastical Stitchery

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Anna Torma, “Abandoned Details I,” 2018

appliqued found objects and hand embroidery on two layers of linen fabric, 54” x 54” (courtesy of the artist)

Anna Torma’s exhibition, Book of Abandoned Details, presents eight major works from the last five years that are rooted in Hungarian textile traditions and the feminist avant-garde reclamation of fibre art in the 1960s and 1970s. These exquisite works, on view at the Esker Foundation in Calgary until Sept. 2, offer entry into an extraordinary world of lush and imaginative narratives with a masterful fusion of embroidery, drawing, collage, dyeing, quilting, appliqué and photo transfer.

Torma’s stitched renderings, which include richly layered fabrics, colours, images and patterns, evoke an array of references from folktales and gardens to graffiti, anatomy drawings and children’s art. Stitch by stitch, the artist methodically and intuitively constructs lively and elaborate stories inhabited by a mix of the fantastical and the real. Her interest in textiles goes back to her childhood, when she learned to sew, knit, crochet and embroider from her mother and grandmothers. Torma, who immigrated to Canada in 1988 and has been based in New Brunswick since 2002, has a degree in textile art and design from the Hungarian University of Applied Arts in Budapest.

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Anna Torma, “Abandoned Details II,” 2018

hand embroidery and applique on two layers of linen fabric, 54” x 54” (detail)

Hanging in the centre of the first gallery space is Permanent Danger, a double-sided tapestry that reveals two garden scenes in densely embellished stitches that resemble coloured pencil markings. The front panel, embroidered on white linen, offers a softer palette of colours with groupings of stunningly drawn people surrounded by curious renderings of animals and flora. In contrast, the other side, embroidered on black linen, is a much darker landscape that includes strange creatures and monstrous flowers. Punctuated with a maelstrom of threaded dots from stitches on the front, it has a frenzied or menacing tone.

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Anna Torma, “Random Landscape I-III, 2015

hand embroidery on silk organza, 71” x 53” (Collection of the Beaverbrook Art Gallery, photo by Allison Seto)

In an adjacent space, a three-panelled installation of multilayered embroideries, Random Landscape I-III, is hung in a staggered arrangement. The pieces, fabricated with layers of organza in beiges, whites and soft pinks, read like lyrical meditations on the cultural landscape, with topographical layers of transparent cloth embellished with embroidered text, human figures and colourful abstract shapes.

At the back of the gallery, a larger space contains several groupings of work, including Torma’s newest pieces and the show’s namesake: Abandoned Details I-VII. This series features an eclectic display of individually stitched images, including remnants of past works, collaged and appliqued in various configurations across pale linen. The motifs that inhabit these framed tapestries seem like the culmination of Torma’s personal graffiti, perhaps comparable to an encyclopedia filled with imaginative and childlike renderings of monsters, humans, flowers, animals, trees, boats and the like.

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Anna Torma, “Parallel Stories I,” 2018

reverse applique, applique and hand embroidery on two layers of handkerchief linen, 51” x 56” (courtesy of the artist)

Influenced by artists like Jean-Michel Basquiat, Cy Twombly and Kiki Smith, Torma synthesizes the domestic ritual of sewing with a vibrant fictional and fantastical impulse. This inspiring show offers a wild and prolific glimpse into personal and cultural narratives that burst and dance across multi-dimensional tapestries. Stitching a lifetime's experience and knowledge into her art, Torma reveals – and revels in – eccentric, whimsical, primeval imagery and diaristic streams of thought. ■

Anna Torma’s exhibition, Book of Abandoned Details, is on view at the Esker Foundation in Calgary from May 26 to Sept. 2, 2018, along with a concurrent show by Vanessa Brown, The Witching Hour.