Artist Name: Rory Torstensson
Residency Dates: May – July 2025
Born: 2002
Hometown: Marblehead, MA
Lives & Works: Brooklyn, NY
URL: rorytorstensson.com / Instagram @roryelizabethh
Education:
2024 – BFA in Painting and Drawing, Art Academy of Cincinnati
Bio/Statement:
Rory Torstensson is a figurative and narrative artist whose work explores themes of childhood by the ocean, her Jewish identity, and the relationships she has gained and lost over time. Her paintings engage with notions of belonging, friendship, and intimacy between family and friends, using these connections as a central muse. Balancing the historical weight of figurative painting with contemporary struggles of personal agency and the need for emotional support networks, Rory emphasizes the physicality and process of painting as integral to her practice. Her expressive brushwork and attention to detail bring a sense of pleasure to the viewing experience, allowing her work to oscillate between joy and mourning.
Rory has participated in multiple artist residencies, including Cow House Studios in Ireland and the Florence University of the Arts in Italy, where she further developed her painting practice. She is the recipient of the Folger Purchase Award and the Constance McClure Scholarship. Her work has been exhibited in galleries such as Susan Eley Gallery (NYC), the Contemporary Arts Center (Cincinnati), WavePool Gallery (Cincinnati), Roman Susan (Chicago), Pique (Kentucky), and the Clifton Cultural Arts Center (Cincinnati). Her work is in the permanent collection of The Art Academy of Cincinnati. Torstensson’s paintings have been featured in publications including Tellus Zine and Blending Magazine.
