The Olcott Family Award Winner
Torrance York (born 1966, New York, NY; lives CT) earned a BA from Yale University, New Haven, CT and an MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design, Providence. York has had solo shows at Silvermine Galleries and the New Canaan Museum & Historical Society, both New Canaan, CT; and Southport Gallery, Southport, CT; among others. Her work has been exhibited at Littlejohn Contemporary, New York, NY; Schelfhaudt Gallery, University of Bridgeport, CT; Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield, CT; Arsenal Center for the Arts, Watertown, MA; Nelson Hancock Gallery, Brooklyn, NY; Griffin Museum of Photography, Winchester, MA; Center for Photography at Woodstock, NY. York received an Honorable Mention in The Photo Review Competition, 2020. Her work is included in private collections nationally. York has been an artist in residence at Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snowmass Village, CO, and received a Connecticut Artist Fellowship. York was selected for The Print Center’s 78th ANNUAL exhibition.
Statement from the Artist:
Semaphore examines the shift in my perspective after having been diagnosed five years ago with Parkinson’s Disease. Through images, I consider what it means to integrate this life-altering information into my sense of self. What does acceptance look like? Post diagnosis, everyday items and experiences take on new meaning. Simple tools now represent challenge. Uncertainty pervades the periphery. As I look around me, the branches of trees become networks of neurons, or resemble tendons in my wrist imaged by MRI. Acknowledging these signals facilitates the process of adaptation.
With this project I aim to connect with others whose journeys also require growth, patience and perseverance to move forward. Optimism holds the key for me. Light, always an inspiration, illuminates a path for me to follow. And I go.