Semaphore

In a visual journey of poetic images, the photographer examines how living with Parkinson’s disease has changed her view of the world. Through the process, she commits to a more optimistic perspective.

After discovering that she had Parkinson’s disease, Torrance York focused her camera on the challenge to integrate this life-altering information into her sense of self. In Semaphore, York presents photographs of nature, the human body, medical images, details from daily life, and of light, to speak metaphorically about her shift in perspective post diagnosis. Plunged into an experience often described as dark or isolating, York surfaces with quiet, generous and luminous images that bare human vulnerability, while inspiring optimism and connection. Over ten million people worldwide are living with Parkinson’s disease. While this book is relevant to the Parkinson’s community, it connects with others whose journeys require growth, patience, and perseverance to move forward.
Torrance York earned an MFA in photography from Rhode Island School of Design and a BA from Yale.

Torrance York is an artist and educator living in Connecticut. She earned a BA from Yale, 1988 and an MFA in Photography from Rhode Island School of Design, 1994. For her current project, Semaphore, York has won the Lenscratch Art + Science Award - Honorable Mention, been selected as a Critical Mass 2021 Finalist, received an Honorable Mention award from The Photo Review Competition 2020 and won the Olcott Family award as a semi-finalist in The Print Center 95th ANNUAL competition. York has had solos shows at Silvermine Galleries, New Canaan, CT; New Canaan Museum & Historical Society; and Southport Gallery, Southport, CT; among others. Her work has been exhibited at venues including Littlejohn Contemporary, New York, NY; Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield, CT; Griffin Museum of Photography, Winchester, MA; Schelfhaudt Gallery, University of Bridgeport, CT; Arsenal Center for the Arts, Watertown, MA; Nelson Hancock Gallery, Brooklyn, NY; Center for Photography at Woodstock, NY. Her work is included in private collections nationally. She has been an artist in residence at Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass Village, CO, and received a Connecticut Artist Fellowship grant from the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism. She is an Artist Member of Silvermine Arts Center and her landscape work is represented by Littlejohn Contemporary. Since 2001 she has served on the Board of the Educational Video Center in NYC where she formerly taught documentary video.