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  Rita C. Ford   
  Nashville, TN USA  
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Juried Member of EBSQ+


Welcome to My Profile Page

Thanks for viewing my profile. I was born and raised on a farm in the small town of McMinnville, Tennessee. Like most artists, I have been painting and drawing since early childhood. I attended David Lipscomb University and have a degree in Elementary Education. After several years of teaching school and then many more of working in the corporate world, I have returned to my first love of painting as a profession. Although I am a self-taught artist, I have studied various techniques and applied them throughout my works.

I currently live in Nashville, Tennessee where I am working as a full-time artist. Selling on eBay allows me the opportunity to be a stay-at-home mom and do the type of work I love to do. I have two children in high school and being able to be at their after school events and activities is priceless.

   

My Art and My Studio

My style of painting is representational. I am concentrating my skills in three distinct areas: wildlife and floral, children's figures/portraits and patriotic themes.

My paintings reflect my life experiences, part memory, emotion, and a little fantasy. I usually paint from a collection of photographs using them as a reference point for color, shadow and shape.

I work mainly with acrylics on larger size canvases. Working with acrylics allows me to work faster and more efficiently due to the quicker drying times. I also work in oils, especially on portraits, but the slower drying times (usually over a month to dry) doesn't allow me to offer as many as I would like.

This summer I updated my studio. Since I paint on mostly larger size canvases, I made a large easel so that I can work on larger paintings more easily (my husband refers to me as "Barb Villa" when I'm in a home improvement mood). I also added shelves to display the paintings I have completed (for inspirational purposes of course).

   

The Water Garden Series

 My husband calls me the "goldfish" lady since I usually have a work in progress featuring a goldfish or I'm out in the backyard working on the pond. After buying a home in Nashville, I wanted a tranquil area for just kicking back and relaxing after work, so I built a water garden. I have over 30 goldfish living in the pond as well as water lilies, horse-tail rush, sweet flag, snails and frogs (which I refer to as pond residents). The water lilies and other plants provide shade, food and shelter for the fis