The Compass Collection is an ongoing series by Lucretia Torva that expresses and shares her admiration for women who take action and use their skill set to change the world. Torva says,“I feel these women all act from a deep well of compassion, enabling their determination, drive and focus. Their compassion is for all living things, for children, for animals, for families, for the Earth, for all marginalized people.”
Charlie Giglia (SAR), Collaborating artist
The portraits are purposely large and looking directly at the viewer so that we cannot avoid their presence. We are forced to engage with them. They are painted in a realistic manner so as to accurately represent the subjects, yet Torva heightens the color to add an expressionistic level of emotion. She kept the backgrounds simple and feels that the metallic adds an element of elegance or a feeling of elevated status as with a religious icon. The other quality of metallics is the shine which changes quickly as we move and gives the paintings a dynamic feeling. “I painted these portraits to be attractive and compelling, hoping that viewers would be interested in finding out more about the individual subjects, prompting some inspiration to action. We all have better versions of ourselves available. We can improve a little everyday.”
Lucretia Torva is an artist who is fascinated with surfaces, textures and reflections which inspire her realist paintings that she creates using oils and acrylics on canvas. She is based in Phoenix, Arizona but loves to travel as she was born in Peoria, Illinois and grew up in Scotland and France because her father worked for Caterpillar Tractor Co. She participated in the Sara Lawrence College Study Abroad Program in Paris, France in 1978 and received her MFA from the U. of Illinois in 1982. She has painted many murals throughout her career including the 2015 mural in front of the well known Phoenix art gallery Alwun House, and has had shows in several other local galleries such as Marshall Gallery, Ice House Gallery, Shemer Arts Center, and The Herberger Theatre to name a few. Torva has also traveled the world showing her work in places such as Jawalakhel Nepal, New York NY, Seattle WA, Grenoble France, Henan China, and Beverly Hills CA.
“The Compass Collection” will be exhibited in the Walter Art Gallery, and is able to be viewed via video walkthrough on our social media. The virtual opening reception will be on July 17th 6:30- 7:00pm.