Tori Marsh

Tori Marsh (b. 1984, Little York, New Jersey) is an embroidery artist, educator and mother based out of Rockland, Maine. Marsh has been utilizing embroidery as a form of drawing for the past 8 years. Her surreal “wild women” draw upon the notion of goddess-like grace and power, but most importantly, they’re meant to be humorous. Tori is obsessed with Icelandic/Scandinavian knitwear, cross stitch patterns, quilts, and other textiles. Her embroideries have been shown across the country and she has had the privilege of attending residencies from Canada to Iceland.

Tori’s work was featured in ‘Threads,’ on view July 13-28, 2024.

“I like to think of textile art as a way of drawing, but instead of traditional tools to make lines and marks on paper, I use fabric, yarn or thread. My works utilize the female nude, transformed – women with animal heads. This is a form of anthropomorphism known as theriocephaly, and has been used throughout history to represent deities in various cultures. These figures aim to be subversive, yet quiet, and demand an intimate relationship when viewing (which could make the viewer uncomfortable by being so close). The bodies of these figures are soft, saggy, hairy and stretch marked, things every person has seen on their own body. Yet, unlike some of us, these figures own their new markings and wear them with pride. I use the themes of anthropomorphism, body positivity and humor to showcase the power and tenacious spirit of women, and treat these embroideries as my own little deities. Additionally, these pieces have bright thread drawn patterns on them to emulate tattoos. These patterns are inspired by traditional Icelandic/Scandinavian embroidery and knitwear designs and quilt patterns, and are used to add power to the figures.”