Nina Torr Side-saddle Skeleton, 2017 Gouache on mounting board 36.70h x 46.50w cm NT00117A R 5,800.00
The strange figures in Torr’s intimately-scaled paintings journey across desolate landscapes, under dark skies. These undefined, liminal spaces function as internal landscapes, with the creatures serving as figurations of the roles we play, and our relationships. Their destination is unclear – Torr is focusing on the journey itself and how these beings (or we) deal with our circumstances and navigate new roles. Nothing about the works is prescriptive, though; there is a strong sense of ambivalence in the paintings, seen in the calmly enigmatic expressions of the subjects, whether a lamb, a blue-striped tiger or hooded humanoid.
The artistic practice of both Torr and Laing is uniquely strange and sensitive. But through their works, both artists help us to look at our personal circumstances and journeys, and form a sense of our own narrative.
The exhibition incorporates work by fellow Pretoria-based artist Allen Laing, whose ritualistic sculptural inventions explore ways in which we can respond to and reflect on the daily struggles we face, as we interact with our environments. His collaged wooden masks in this exhibition are mirrored in Torr’s paintings, concealing the faces of some of her subjects; an intuitive reference to identify formation and how we alter ourselves to interact with different people around us.
Laing graduated from the University of Pretoria with a Fine Art degree and specialises in mixed media sculptures with machine aesthetic. He is one of the founding members of Found Collective, a collective for collaboration and promotion of the arts in Pretoria. His works explore the loss of culture and ritual in our mass produced consumerist society.
Torr attained a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Parsons School of Design in New York in 2010, and returned to South Africa to work as an artist and arts educator. She has exhibited in group and solo show around the country. This is her second exhibition with 99 Loop.
Nina Torr Blue Tiger and Red Cub, 2017 Gouache on mounting board 33.50h x 19w cm NT00217A R 4,200.00
Allen Laing Coniferous Columnar Concealer, 2017 Various woods 63 x 19.5 x 37 cm AL00117A R 12,900.00
Nina Torr Blank Stare, 2017 Gouache on mounting board NT00617A R4,200
Nina Torr Couple, 2017 25h x 18w cm NT00417A R 4,200.00
Nina Torr Groot Hond op ‘n Berg, 2017 Gouache on mounting board 36.80h x 46.50w cm NT00517A R 5,800.00
Allen Laing Vinegar Slap Chips Mask, 2017 Various woods 69.5 x 25 x 60 cm AL00217A R 15,100.00
Nina Torr Three-faced, 2017 Gouache on mounting board NT00917A R4,200
Nina Torr Lamb and Yellow Head, 2017 18h x 18w cm Gouache on mounting board NT00817A R 3,400.00
Allen Laing Self-portrait Orang-utang mask, 2017 Various woods 32 x 21 x 21 cm AL00317A R 12,400.00
Nina Torr Yellow Raincoat, 2017 Gouache on mounting board 33.50h x 19w cm NT00317A R 4,200.00
Nina Torr Falling Skeleton, 2017 33.50h x 19w cm Gouache on mounting board NT00717A
Allen Laing Jacaranda City Workbench, 2017 Various woods 56 x 19 x 6cm AL00417A NOT FOR SALE
Nina Torr Young Marduk, 2017 40h x 43.50w cm NT01017A R 5,800.00
Nina Torr Old Place, 2017 Gouache on mounting board 18h x 39w cm NT01117A R 4,200.00
Nina Torr Trust Me, 2017 21h x 19w cm Gouache on mounting board NT01217A R 3,200.00