Back with his third solo exhibition titled ‘Capturing the Spirit’, contemporary Scottish artist Ronnie Ford portrays his artworks on travels and experiences through ‘‘.
About the Artist
Born in Dunoon, Scotland, Ford’s passion for art started when he was 16. Acrylic paint back in the day was too sticky and he wanted to combine his love for painting and sculpting. Thus, Ronnie Ford became the pioneer artist to adopt what is now known as ‘‘. Growing up, he had many role models – such as English painter Bridget Riley and artist Riley Bertram – and he also sought inspirations from various art forms like Chinese contemporary art.
Currently a full-time professional artist, Ronnie Ford launched his career with sell-out shows in Hong Kong and London and has built a strong international presence over the years. He also recently formed the Vibrant Arts Movement, which promotes young artists and musicians in a creative spiral of art inspiring music, dance, poetry and food.
Capturing the Spirit
Ronnie has been constantly exploring new art forms and his artworks have evolved over the years. For example, on top of the usual French landscapes, this exhibit also features breath-taking views from Switzerland. Viewers could also catch a glimpse of Ronnie’s new venture into abstract and optical art.
Similar to his previous works, Capturing the Spirit focuses on nature-based themes as opposed to buildings and landmarks. Almost constant in Ronnie’s paintings are the two cypress trees, one tall and one small. For the uninitiated, it is a representation of him and his wife as they are, according to Ronnie, who describes them as “always together and never apart”.
In order to truly capture the spirit of a place, Ronnie does not paint onsite but rather chooses to “look, photograph, and sketch” his immediate impressions of the landscape he traverses. Only then does he return home to paint them in detail. He also does several paintings at the same time, reasoning that he “does not want to waste a single minute of his life”.
His advice to aspiring artists is to “find your own style that reflects yourself – no gimmicks, no copying”. Ideally, the artist’s style should be unique enough for viewers to be able to identify the artist’s works even without the need for any signature on the art pieces. This can be seen in his own works, as he would not include his signature on a painting if it meant that the aesthetics of his own works would be compromised.
Capturing the Spirit was showcased at Ode to Art gallery from 7 November to 21 November 2018. For more information, visit the official Ode to Art website.
Photos courtesy of Ode to Art gallery.
