From medicine to art
As the son of an Air Force officer, Mike Torma moved around a large amount, beginning in rural Alabama. As such it was a logical progression for him to enter the service himself. He enjoyed a successful joint medical and military career in the U.S. Air Force from 1967 until 1992.
Torma graduated from the University of Alabama School of Medicine in 1968. He followed that with internship and residency in general surgery in San Antonio and then a research fellowship in gastrointestinal surgery in Salt Lake City. He ultimately rose to the rank of brigadier general, last serving as command surgeon for Strategic Air Command.
In 1992, he became chairman of surgical services at the prestigious Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas. He then relocated to Shreveport in 1996 for grant work associated with the Biomedical Research Foundation. Once that grant work concluded, Torma worked in Shreveport’s Willis-Knighton in wound care and hyperbaric medicine where he concluded his medical career in 2012. By the time of his retirement from medical practice, he and his family had decided to make Shreveport their permanent home.
This resume would be enough for almost anyone to retire with a feeling of satisfaction and ample accomplishment. But Torma had long had an interest in art that he had carried from his earliest days and continues to this day.
Torma earned a bachelor of arts degree from Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Mo.
“While there, I exhibited a piece of art at the William Rockhill Nelson Gallery,” Torma said. He said some of his friends have dubbed him “an American da Vinci.”
“That designation came not necessarily from the quality of my work but from its diversity. Over the years, I have been a scientist, inventor, surgeon, aviator and general,” Torma said.
Though he has certainly lived a life of rich diversity and success, Torma now devotes himself full time to his artwork.
Throughout his dual military/medical career, he continued to paint and exhibit.
“For instance, I had showings at the Torpedo Factory in Alexandria, Va., and the Coleman Gallery in York, Ala. During this time, I won that All Air Force art competition in the 1980s. During my time in the service, I used leave time for studies with Martha Myer Ehrelbacher, Anthony Ryder and other art world mentors,” Torma said.
“My juried works have qualified me for the roster appellation through the Shreveport Regional Arts Council and the highest exhibition tier through the Bossier Arts Council,” Torma said.
Torma’s art has received favorable press commentary from Susan Larsen, renewed art critic and biographer. Recent exhibits have included Central ARTSTATION and artspace, both sponsored by SRAC. Torma’s work is on display at the Norsworthy Gallery through Dec. 30.
“I also like to tell stories through my art usually with more than one level of symbolism. Throughout my undergraduate years, I did portraits and sold other artworks to earn money for medical school,” Torma said.
He also studied briefly at the prestigious Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux Arts in Paris, France.
“My drawings and paintings reflect my major artistic interests, which are primarily people and pets. They also evoke my travels. Even while painting in plein air, I’ve usually thought art that did not include a human would be a missed opportunity,” Torma said.
Torma’s mediums range from oils to acrylic to watercolor.
“Most of the time, I choose the medium that I think will best express the subject I am interpreting. For instance, watercolors are more freewheeling. I feel choice of medium changes the quality of expression,” Torma said.
Even with his educational and career background, Torma is someone who never stops evolving and learning. Among the many mentors he has enjoyed over the years is Shreveport artist and teacher Dave Ivey.
“I have taken some of Dave’s courses and always find new perspectives from other artists and mentors,” Torma said.
Artist and teacher Dave Ivey has great admiration for his former student.
“Mike Torma has a real gift for drawing people, which I attribute to his medical training and career. He is incredibly passionate about his art and is always striving to evolve,” Ivey said.
–Karl Hasten
