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Self-described as “blessed with a photo-graphic
memory,” Ford’s ability to paint
en plein air when not outside is therefore
indebted to considerable time spent with his
subject — the flora and fauna that thrive
on coasts, in woodlands, and in marshes of
primarily north Florida and North Carolina.
Ford’s knowledge of nature is born of doing,
of a life spent exploring, hunting, collecting
and observing, and as the list of actions goes
on, it includes sketching. Ford’s love of nature
is paired with an inherent passion and talent
for art, and the sum of these actions has led to
a successful career as an artist.
As his brother, and both buyer and broker,
Scott Riley says, “Ford is gifted in his love for
the wild,” and his ability to translate this into
art has gained him a loyal following not only
in Jacksonville, but with high-profile clients
beyond his hometown area. He has been
recognized in national and international com-petitions,
and his originals hang in galleries,
institutions and homes of prominent civic
leaders, executives and members of Congress.
Seventy-five of these original pieces have been
reprinted in limited editions through Stellers
Gallery, the Jacksonville gallery opened by
Scott Riley in 1985 when he began to
exclusively promote his brother’s artwork.
The gallery, now one of the longest-operating,
privately-owned galleries in the northeast
Florida region, is named after one of Ford’s
first successful pieces, a Stellers blue jay.
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Cypress Woodies
Coastal Gathering