Anna Torma: Permanent Danger

Name: Anna Torma: Permanent Danger
Start: 2020-08-07T00:00:00-04:00
End: 2021-03-20T23:59:59-04:00

Anna Torma’s large embroideries are complex expressions of her experiences of family, immigration, joy, and the act of creation.

Anna Torma’s large embroideries show her deep concern for the world we live in. Her unique drawing style is an expression of her complex experiences of family, immigration, joy, and the act of artistic creation. Her works are richly layered narratives with references to popular culture, thrift shop aesthetics, and traditional Hungarian textiles.

The exhibition takes its title – Permanent Danger – from a 2017 piece of the same name, making reference to human strife and vulnerability, threatened natural environments, and the highs and lows of daily life. The installation will comprise 15 large-scale works made since 2011, most of them shown here for the first time.

Please note: This exhibition contains nudity and sexual imagery, visitors wishing to preview the exhibition can view all images of the artworks with their corresponding labels and didactics in this guide

Type: Exhibition

Date: Aug 7, 2020 - Mar 20, 2021

Curated by: Sarah Quinton

Back to What’s On

Entrance to the exhibition, pale pink walls with purple text and a framed embroidery

Installation view of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Torso (2011), Silkscreen print, found embroidery and applique, hand stitching on cotton fabric, 60 x 60cm, Courtesy the artist. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Partial view of a light blue hanging embroidered with fantasy creatures, pale pink walls and another hanging is visible through a doorway

Installation view of Fight 1 (2018, 130 x 140 cm) in Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Fight 1 (2018), Hand embroidery and reverse appliqué on 2 layers on linen, digital and commercial prints, 130 x 140cm, Courtesy the artist. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Three large embroidered wall hangings in a white-walled gallery

Installation view of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Two large embroidered hangings with black shapes and silhouettes of fantasy creatures on a tan ground colour.

Installation view of Permanent Danger 4 (2019, 201 x 130 cm) and Permanent Danger 5 (2019, 201 x 130 cm) in Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Installation Shot of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Fight 2 (2018), Hand embroidery and reverse appliqué on 2 layers of linen, silk threads and commercial prints, 130 x 140cm, Courtesy the artist. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Installation Shot of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Permanent Danger (2017), Hand embroidery and reverse appliqué on 3 layers of linen fabric, silk thread, double sided; 160 x 125cm

Anna Torma, Permanent Danger (detail), (2017), Hand embroidery and reverse appliqué on 3 layers of linen fabric, silk thread, double sided; 160 x 125cm

Installation Shot of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

View of a gallery with several large embroidered hangings on white walls

Installation view of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Dionysia (2020), Hand embroidery on several layers of transparent silk fabric, silk thread, 105 x 180cm, Courtesy the artist.  Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Gardens 2 (2018), Hand embroidery and applique on silk fabric, silk thread, 100 x 100cm, Courtesy the artist. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Installation Shot of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Gardens 1 (2018), Hand embroidery and applique on silk fabric, silk thread, 100 x 100cm, Courtesy the artist. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Party with Dionysos (2008 - 2015), Hand embroidery on linen fabric, cotton thread with silk collage border, 185 x 150cm, Collection of Patrick Cady / Musée d’Art Contemporain Singulier. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Installation Shot of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Pedagogical Charts 2,(2016). Hand embroidered collage on linen, silk thread. 143 x 116 cm. Courtesy Galerie Laroche / Joncas. Photo by Guy L’Heureux.

Installation Shot of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Pedagogical Charts 1 (2016), Hand embroidered collage on linen fabric, silk thread, 143 x 116cm, Collection of Michel L’Heureux. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Installation Shot of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Photo by Darren Rigo.

A long gallery with two long narrow hangings with patches of different fabric sewn on

Installation view of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Personal Ribbon 1 (2020) (detail), Handwoven hemp base with found textile objects, 50 x 450cm, Courtesy the artist. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma, Personal Ribbon 2 (2020) Handwoven hemp base with found textile objects 50 x 350cm, Courtesy the artist. Photo by Darren Rigo.

Close view of a case filled with sketches, threads, and sewing tools

Installation view of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger Photo by Darren Rigo.

A gallery with a case of sewing tools, two long narrow hangings, and a large embroidered hanging farthest away

Installation view of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger Photo by Darren Rigo.

Anna Torma: Permanent Danger. Anna Torma's large embroidered artworks show her deep concern for the world we live in. She is known for her expressive needlework that captures complex experiences of identity, family, and personal acts of artistic creation. Her richly layered narratives engage with the environment, the home, and well-being.

Installation view of Anna Torma: Permanent Danger Photo by Darren Rigo.

Winner of the 2020 Saidye Bronfman Award for Excellence in Crafts, Anna Torma is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts and a recipient of the New Brunswick Lieutenant-Governor’s Award for High Achievement in Visual Arts. She has exhibited her work nationally and internationally, and in 2019 she participated in the prestigious 16th International Triennial of Tapestry in Lodz, Poland. She was born in Tarnaors, Hungary and graduated with a degree in Textile Art and Design from the Hungarian University of Applied Arts, Budapest in 1979. Torma immigrated to Canada in 1988 and now lives in Baie Verte, New Brunswick.

Presenting Sponsors: BMO & Carole Tanenbaum | Supporting Partner: The Sheila Hugh Mackay Foundation | With support from: Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, and the Government of Ontario.

PROGRAMS

In Conversation with Anna Torma: On October 27, 2020 the Textile Museum of Canada was excited to virtually host Nicole Burisch, Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art at the National Gallery of Canada, Sarah Quinton, Curatorial Director at the Textile Museum of Canada and artist Anna Torma

In Conversation: Nehal El-Hadi with Anna Torma and Sarah Quinton | On January 26, DesignTO hosted Nehal El-Hadi, Editor-in-Chief of Studio Magazine, artist Anna Torma, and Curatorial Director Sarah Quinton as they explored Torma’s solo exhibition Permanent Danger.