In creating these 'Virtual Relics', I have combined the idea of ancient and revered religious objects, carefully preserved in sealed containers for the edification of the faithful with more contemporary items and concepts, less likely to inspire spiritual awe yet inviting contemplation and disturbing conclusions. In each piece I attempt to recapture pasts; real, imagined or simply felt as well project a virtual and potentially threatening future into the mind of the viewer.
Tor’s artwork is inspired by film making processes in which a scene is defined by a camera frame enclosing environments, objects/props that viewers mentally and occasionally physically interact with. His disturbing and surreal creations are infused with a sense of lost history, changing social/philosophical values as well as well as darker subconscious themes.
The choice of materials has always been important for Tor. His preference for found and recycled materials and objects imbued with their own history, is crucial to his conceptual development, often informing the construction, ultimate shape and meaning in a given work.
Also crucial to his create process; is the juxtaposition of unlikely materials, objects and ideas as a means of stimulating thought and emotional responses in the viewer, sometimes affected through mechanical interaction with a work where the viewer becomes part of the process of its realisation.
Much of Tor's work attempts to recapture pasts; real, imagined or simply felt as well as to project a virtual and potentially threatening future into the mind of the viewer.
As an artist, Tor gained early exposure to tools and processes in his parent’s jewellery workshop. His first jobs were as a model and prop-maker which led to further employment in the film industry building miniature scenes and creating visual effects. In 1998, he completed a diploma in production design at the AFTRS, following which he worked for various companies and productions on the Gold Coast and in Melbourne as an art director and visual effects coordinator, eventually becoming a producer in Sydney. In 2015 Tor completed a degree in political economy at Sydney University. More recently he has been making jewellery, small sculptures and miniature installations that reflect his political, social and historical/cultural interests as experienced through the cinematic frame. His most recent exhibition was held with his parents and sister, Two Generations: Larsen & Lewers Pia Larsen, Tor Larsen at Spot81 gallery, Sydney in 2016.
Group Exhibition
Art in Isolation
July 6-August 6, 2020