Jim Ford

Jim Ford is an interdisciplinary artist and type designer with studios based in Milwaukee. Ford works primarily as a painter and sculptor, using acrylic mixed media, collage ephemera, printed fabrics and household materials for his signature collage paintings. His works are loosely animated, intuitive yet sophisticated; sometimes appearing mechanized in their moiré of color, texture and pattern. Symbolically abstract and subliminally coded, Ford’s themes tend to quips, commentary, inside jokes, and also theory, teachings and musings – reflecting the artist’s beliefs, passions and personal studies. Although many of his artworks are individual and unrelated, Ford works in various series to explore a particular theme or method, thinking laterally. More recently, his work has extended to synthetic mixed media sculptures employing organic patterns and elements of sacred geometry, which he refers to as thought forms and transdimensional recordings. Aside from his art practice, Jim Ford is an award-winning typeface designer with several original designs including Posterama, Masqualero and Hideout. In his tenure at Monotype and Ascender, he created bespoke typefaces for international brands, publications, devices and video games. Ford is perhaps best known for his keen drawing abilities and storied typefaces. artist statementArt & design are my vehicles of transformation and connection. Sometimes it’s like having a key to a time machine. Art gives form, color and space to the songs of the soul; while design provides a practical, functional beauty. I hope that my work can be a crossroads of culture – where people from all directions can experience something profoundly universal. A culture of truth, compassion, freedom and expression. I see my work as a duty of faith, service and manifestation. A way of understanding life and sharing my energy with others. I work like an artist-inventor in a variety of media. Many of my collage paintings are individual in spirit, though I typically work in series. During the pandemic I’ve been exploring sculpture, developing processes and techniques in the studio. My current body of work is a spiritually-charged experience combining painting, sculpture and collage. A communion between human imagination and infinite patterns found in nature.