{gamma} rays from neutron-rich Ti nuclei in the vicinity of N=32 have been studied at Gammasphere using deep-inelastic reactions induced by {sup 48}Ca beams on thick {sup 208}Pb and {sup 238}U targets. The {sup 53}Ti yrast cascade was identified for the first time, and the location in energy of states with spin up to I = 21/2 was determined. The excitations of {sup 53}Ti provide new tests of effective interactions for full-pf-shell calculations. Comparisons between theory and experiment for the highest spin states in {sup 53}Ti favor the recently proposed GXPF1A interaction, which accounts for the appearance of a neutron subshell closure at N=32 in Ti isotopes as well as for the lack of a similar subshell closure at N=34, as predicted by earlier calculations with another interaction.