Oil Paintings
A Master’s Brushstroke
Toller Cranston’s art is deeply influenced by his extensive travels, both as a champion figure skater and as an artist, that afforded him the unique opportunity to immerse himself in diverse cultures. From the vibrant streets of Mexico to the historical cities of Europe, this exposure to different traditions, landscapes, and people became a wellspring of inspiration for his art and infused his work with a rich tapestry of global influences.
Recurring themes in Toller’s paintings include mythical figures, cultural symbols, and a vivid use of color that evoke the essence of the places he visited. His works often blend the fantastical with the real, creating visual narratives that speak to both the spirit of adventure and the emotional depth of his personal experiences. Toller’s ability to integrate these diverse cultural elements into his paintings not only reflects his travels but also reveals his deep curiosity and respect for the world around him. Through his art, he invites viewers to experience the beauty, complexity, and richness of global cultures, and offers a glimpse into a world where imagination and reality seamlessly intertwine.
Toller Cranston preferred oil paint because of its rich texture, vibrant colors, and the ability to layer and manipulate the medium over time. Oil paint allowed him to create depth and movement in his compositions, reflecting his expressive and theatrical style. He was drawn to its slow drying time, which enabled him to blend colors seamlessly and revisit works to refine details. Additionally, oil paint’s luminosity and ability to hold bold, dynamic strokes suited his dramatic and intricate artistic vision, mirroring the passion and intensity he brought to both his art and figure skating.
Recurring Themes
For Ever and Ever, Amen
In Toller’s paintings, there is a sense of romance and longing, of searching and striving to find a soulmate. For ever and ever, Amen.*
Destiny: Many Ways to Get There
Toller believed in destiny. Toller’s paintings frequently suggest a journey, a quest, an escape from something, or a voyage toward something.
Mortality
Toller often spoke about life and mortality. Death was present in many of his paintings but never in a bitter or maudlin way, more as an acceptance of the inevitable. He said “I have spent my life going in circles with figure skating and I accept the cycles, the beginnings and ends. I know that sooner or later, it will end. Nothing lasts forever.”
Orbs and Blobs
If there is a recurrent image in Toller’s paintings it may be these strangely mysterious circular icons. They appear in different colours, different sizes, and in different positions in the paintings but they are almost always present. There are many theories and ideas about what they meant to Toller.
The Skating Paintings
He said, “I have done a series of skating paintings not because I wished to paint about skating, and not because I was a skater. I am digging deep within my archival memory to bring up images and feelings of movement and choreographic nuance and visuals that I might have seen. I relive the struggle of competition, of striving to get to the top, of fighting to stay at the top, of being criticized and judged.”
Strawberries
The creation of The Strawberry Queen in 1974 kicked off Toller’s decades-long obsession with strawberries. He painted strawberries for more than five decades. He occasionally made efforts to leave the berries behind, but, confessed that, “sometimes a strawberry pop out of nowhere and lands on the canvas.”
The Northen Lights Blue/Green Series
Sometime in 2012, the predominant colours in Toller’s paintings changed suddenly and dramatically from the decades-long dominance of vibrant jewel tones of reds, blues, and golds to a palette characterized by greens, blues, teals, and purples. He called it the Northern Lights series.
Free of Gravity
In many Toller paintings, figures float above the earth, untied to convention, free of gravity, free of rules. Creatures, carriages, and animals float too. Not infrequently there are paintings of kites that may represent freedom, joy, and individuality that is yet constrained or remains tethered to tradition or to the establishment.
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: The Portraits
Through bold expressive faces with deeply eloquent eyes, Toller’s portraits welcome us into his magical worlds of fantasy and joy, loneliness and sorrow, regret and longing.
The Music
He was a figure skater for more than four decades. He skated to music, painted to music, created to music, and dreamed to music. Music found its way into his paintings. It is in the processions, festivities, and celebrations. It is in the instruments. It is in the scenes of love and loneliness.
Good Heavens: Angels and Nuns
He created a series of magnificent angel paintings—huge canvasses of richly berobed figures. He also painted a series of nuns, on skates. Not magnificent, but utterly charming. Nuns in habits on skates can’t be serious, but they can be exuberant.
The Silk Road
Toller often declared that “stylistically, all my work emanates from the Silk Road.” Toller’s paintings with oriental and eastern images and heavily bedecked horses are influenced by the power and grace of the Silk Road Fergana horses.
The Russian Influences
The Russian influences which initially bubbled up from his imagination and were later augmented by his direct experience, observation, and study are unmistakeable in Toller’s paintings.
The Landscapes
Toller painted landscapes and created magical worlds of frozen ponds and hillside villages, but he never painted an interior, at least not a recognizable interior in the sense of curtains, furniture, and walls.
For Ever and Ever, Amen
Toller had a deep affinity to nature. He said: “The colours you see in nature have a huge influence on the colours I choose as an artist. Irregular shape is something which is important to me, and it is always found in the images in my paintings. I am always looking to nature for answers.
Unnatural Creatures and Faithful Companions
There are an astonishing number of creatures that inhabit Toller’s paintings. Some are big. Some are small. Some have colour and pattern; others are dark silhouettes. Sometimes the creatures seem to be faithful and devoted companions, sometimes participants in a celebration, sometimes fellow travellers. Sometimes they seem quite mad.
Fine Feathers
The bird paintings are joyful and give a feeling of flair, colour, texture, shape, whimsy, and fancifulness. Chickens, with their distinctive appearance and quirky behavior, have captured the attention of humans for thousands of years
Once Upon a Time
Toller was certainly influenced by folklore, legends, myths, fairy tales, folk songs, proverbs, and superstitions. Many of his paintings suggest stories, but the images are never cute or precocious. Dwelling between the “once upon a times” and “happily ever afters” are suggestions of struggle, loneliness, setback, and challenge.
A SPECIAL INVITATION
The artworks featured in various categories on this website serve as examples and do not represent the artist’s complete body of work. Toller International has created the official Toller Cranston Catalogue Raisonné—a definitive, continuously updated online record of his artistic legacy. As new pieces are identified, authenticated, and documented, the collection will expand accordingly.
If you own an original painting, drawing, or hand-painted collectible, we invite you to submit it for inclusion. Click HERE for further information.
To own an authentic Toller Cranston artwork is to own a piece of his fearless spirit. But in the art world, authenticity is everything. That’s why it’s crucial to acquire his works from a trusted expert who ensures provenance, authenticity, and the preservation of his extraordinary legacy.
Authorized Gallery:
Donna Child Fine Art Gallery
365 Evans Avenue, Toronto, ON, Canada
416-620-0500
donnachildfineart.com
donna@donnachildfineart.com