Where Nature Meets Art and Science Meets Folk-Lore :: Aleah Ford :: Sculpture
“Metamorphosis is a reminder that we each already contain within ourselves the blueprint for our greatest potential.”
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The most beautiful giant Picasso moth lives in my favorite spot in my house, nestled against antique books and fossils. It looks as if it flew in and lighted right there on the edge of the shelf, knowing that's just the perfect spot. That ethereal quality is what Aleah Ford brings to all of her artwork- something a little mysterious and surreal, but oh so beautiful!
Aleah Ford currently resides on the coast of Rhode Island, but she grew up in upstate New York. “I was a strange child,” she says, “very adept at keeping myself occupied with make-believe and art. I was both speech impaired and delayed, so I sometimes drew pictures as I spoke. Even now, I feel more at ease sketching an idea than I do explaining it!”
“I feel like a Victorian collector putting on display the beauty of these fascinating creatures.”
When Aleah was 8, her family moved to Germany for a short time. She says, “The history, folk-lore, and rich landscape fascinated me and still inspires me almost 20 years later! The school curriculum was very different than in the US. Nature, culture, and art were consistently woven throughout the other subjects.
Inspired by nature and fantasy, Aleah's art is faux taxidermy sculptures that are realistic representations of moths, butterflies, and bees. “I approach these creations both symbolically and scientifically” she says,”The lepidopteran family is home to hundreds of thousands of species of moths and butterflies with an incredible range of color and markings. These creatures are also the subject of beautiful symbolism across cultures. I feel like a Victorian collector putting on display the beauty of these fascinating creatures.”
Aleah is also fascinated by the process of metamorphosis. “It is a reminder that we each already contain within ourselves the blueprint for our greatest potential.”
“With a background in folk-lore, faerie tales, and mythologies, I am constantly looking at the natural world through the lens of a mystic. At the same time, I love to learn about the scientific inner working of the natural world.”
“Create, fail, and then create again”
Aleah's sculptures went through four iterations across four years of gaining new skills and knowledge before she landed on her current method. “Create, fail, and then create again,” she says to other creatives, “Failure is a wonderful teacher, especially if you're stubborn! Everything that you’ve created up to this point is the foundation for your next piece of art. That includes the successes, the disappointments, and the downright disasters.”
Aleah’s Roar
“You have permission. That’s right, you have permission to create the way you’ve dreamed of creating with the subject matter that makes your heart sing. You have permission to shift course. To fail. To succeed. Realizing this was a turning point in how I create. I tend to make rules for myself and then get anxious at the prospect of deviating, as if I am not allowed to explore another winding path.”