.1998

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HEARTS OF STEEL:The Visionory Arf ofWillie & Mqe Tqrver

Georgio lllluseum of Art

Jonuory l5 - tebruory l, 1998

letitio ond Rowlond Rodford Study Gollery

ln honor o{ Dr. Mortin Luther King, Jr,, one of the

twentielh cenlury's mostsignificonf figures, the Geor-

gio Museum o{ Art ond the University's 1998 Mor'

tin Luther King, Jr. Holidoy Commiflee ore pleosed

lo presenl o diologue-sfyle lecfure by Mr. Willie

Torver. Mr. Torver, o self-tought ortis t from Wodley,

Georgio, will be ioined by his wifq A4oe lorver, olso

o self+ougfit artisl, ond Morie T. Cochron, ossistonl

prolessor wiilr the University of Georgio lomor Dodd

School of Arl. Cochron will focilitote fhe lorvers'

discussion of their ort ond fhe influence of Akicon'

Americon {olklore, orol hisfories, ond the civil righfs

moyemenl on Africon-Americon odisfs in lhe rurol

South todoy" A receplion will {ollow in the moin

lobby.

The exhibition, HEARIS OF SIEEI.: TheYisionory Art

ol Willie & Moe Torver, will include severol sculp-

tures. The following essoy provides bockground on

lhe odisls ond descrrplions of o few of lhe works fhol

will be included in lhe exhibition.

illie Torver speoks tenderly of his work,

"Other men hunf, fish, or golf to flll the

emptiness in their life. I hove become oddictedto ort."

Willie ond filoe Torver grew up shore-

cropping neor lheir home in Wodley, Georgio.As husbond ond wife, the Torvers hove o strong

connection to their lorge fomily ond the lond thot

they hove owned for generotions. Though only

Mr. Torver! work is feotured in this exhibition,

Willie ond Moe work togelher os qn ortist teom.

Ar'1oe, o retired beouf icion, serves os iheir monoger

ond is o missionory for lhe smoll Pentecosiol Holi-

ness meeting house, which sils on their property.

Mr. Torver wos born in Georgio in 1932, but he

troveled to Ohio os o teenoger to work in o steel

mill for five yeors. He then served for lwo yeors

in the ormy before moving to New York to find

ond morry Moe, his childhood sweetheort. Afterthirleen yeors in New York, Mr. Torver convinced

Moe to return to Wodley, where he worked o vo-

riety of iobs, concluding with twenty-f ive yeors

of service ot Thermo King foctory before his re-

tirement.

Mr. Torver inherited ortistic interests from his fo-

ther, Eddie W Torver-now 89 yeors old-whoestoblished o reputotion os o self -tought corpen-

ter ond builder. Willie Torver remembers thot

times were dif f lcult for o fomily with twelve chil-

dren ond thot there wosn't enough money for

children's toys. Yet his fother mode ploythings for

him ond loter he fobricoted toys of his own. As

Torver tries to exploin lhe reoson why he mokes

things, he troces it bock to thot eorly desire to

bring life to things from his imoginotion.

Torver works exclusively os o sculptor, His first

serious pieces were both uiilitorion ond personol.

Working in cement, Torver crofted o heodstone

for the grove of his brother Eddie W. Torver, Jr.

This led to oiher commissions f rom fellow church

members ond fomily. Torver stotes thot os he

continued to work with the cement he reolized

thot o metol ormoture would strengthen the ce-

ment f igures. Eventuolly the metolforms intriguedhim so much thot he opted to let them stond f ree.

Currenlly, Torver olternotes between concrete

ond steel.

Eoch sculpture Mr. Torver mokes, whether it is ce-

ment or welded steel, begins with on inspirotion

ond o siory. The visuol ospects of his work ore

strong enough for eoch work to stond on its own.

Yet, it is the story behind eoch piece thot mokes

them so speciol. Mr Torver is os much o storytelleros he is o sculptor. Working with scrops of metol

in his home studio is on oct of discovery thol gives

life to the discorded pieces.

Feotured in this exhibition is on ensemble piece,

The Morkethouseond Ihe Eond.The Morkethouse

is Torver's re-creoiion of the historic "slove mor-

ket" in Louisville, Georgio Built in 1258, the open-

oir, povilion-like, structure, which the GeorgioHisloricol Society soys is

unique in lhe notion, sils inthe middle of downtown iustoff U.S. l. The sile wos o

multi-purpose regionol trod-

ing post during the coloniolperiod; however, during ihe

lote.1700s ond 1800s when

Louisville wos the Georgio

stote copitol, slove buyers

ond ploniotion owners met

ot lhe site io selI their "hu-

mon property" olong withcrops ond livestock. Torver

hos vivid memories of sto-

ries thot were told to him os

port of the orol history ofieffeison County.

Torver hos chosen to revise the despoir whichmorks this historic site. ln his work, Torver sur-

rounds IheMo rkethouse with o collection of f ig-

ures which he colls The Bond. These humon fig-

ures represeni the descendonts of sloves whowere sold oi the morket. They hove come bock os

musicions to celebrole their freedom. Art criticMorty Shuter of the Sovonnoh News Press noled,

"Torver imbues lhese f igures with o wonderfulsense of motion. They seem f luid ond olive withquizzicol ond often comicol expressions. Their

instruments look os if they hove come stroight

out of o Dr. Seuss book." ln this poiring of grov-

ity ond humor, Torver hos poid homoge to his

own oncestors ond coniured up the possibllitiesof redemption.

Willie ond Moe Torver received o commission

from Georgio Power Compony to design ond

construct concrele reliefs for on orchwoy on o

plozo in the urbon "Folk Ari Pork." The proiect

wos dedicoted during the Olympic Gomes in At.lonto '1996. Their work con be seen in folk ort gol-

leries oround the Southeost.

Brochure, guesl speokers, recepfion, ond occompo-

nying exhibition ore sponsored by The Universily's

1998 Martin Luther King, Jr. Holidoy Commiflee ond

fhe Georgio Museum of Art.

Ihrc exhibilion, lecture, ond brochure were completed

under lhe direclion of Victorio lepko, curofor of edu-

cofion, Georgiol4useum of Art. Morie L Cochron,

Assislonl Professor with the lJniversity of Georgio

Lomor Dodd School of Art, composed lhe descrrp-

live essoy. Grophics supporl for lhe brochure wos

provided by theUniversify of Georgio Cenfer for Con-

tinuing Educotion. The 1998 Mortin Luther King, Jr.

Hotido;y Art Exhibit ond lecfure sub-commiflee,

Cormen Shuler, Morie f. Cochron, ond Belh Ben-

lamin-Alvorado, wish fo ocknowledge the.supporf

ond ossislonce ol the Georgio Museum of Art in

ioinfly sponsoring the third Morlin Luther King, Jr.

Art Exhibit ond lecture os o port of the Universily o[

Georgio's King Holidoy Week evenls.

Performing ond

VisuolArts (omplex

Portiol suppoil for fhe exhibifions

ond progroms for lhe Georgio

Museum of Arf is provide d by the

Georgio Council for the Arls through oppropriolions

of lhe Georgio Generol Assembly. A porlion of the

museum's generol operoling supporf for this yeor

Iros been provided through lhe Insfilute oI Museum

Seryices, o federol ogency serving the public by

strenglhening museums ond librories. lndividuols,

foundolions, ond corporolions provide odditionol

support through lheir gifts lo the tJniversily of Geor-

gio Foundolion. The Georgio Museum of Arf's hours

ore 10 o.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdoy, Wednesdoy, Thurs-

doy, ond Sofurdoy; I0 o.m. to 9 p.m: on Fridoy;

ond I p.m. fo 5 p.m. on Sundoy.

GEORGIAMUSEUMOF.ART