Painter in oils and on silk. Miss Ford is thought to have been the daughter of a surveyor who arrived from the eastern colonies or New Zealand at the time of the gold rushes. Her brother George Ford was organist at St George’s Cathedral. Both died very young.
Her address in 1898 was Marlborough Street, Norwood. That year Miss Ford exhibited oil paintings of fruit and a Group of Native Flowers with the West Australian Society of Arts. These were described by the critic 'Hermit’ as small “though fairly well executed wants modelling and vignetting.” Despite this she was selected to exhibit wildflower paintings in the Western Australian Pavilion of the Paris Exhibition in 1900, which were sent on to the Glasgow International Exhibition in 1902.
In 1901 Miss Ford exhibited a lush still life of fruit and flowers with the West Australian Society of Arts and in 1906 Miss Ford won a prize for a lace fan. Miss Ford undertook some classes at Perth Technical School. In 1902 she had a third class pass in Freehand Second Grade, third Class pass in Model Drawing first Grade, second class pass in Drawing from the Cast Second Grade. This must have been for the social aspect as she was already an accomplished painter.
In 1903 Miss Ford exhibited a painting of a church interior, which was described as “displays exhaustive care in the drawing, and a life-like representation of the soft colouring peculiar to the subject.” This was entitled Wherein Thine Honour Dwells and was illustrated in the catalogue. Another was Anglican Cathedral. It was possible she sketched or painted while her brother was practising on the organ. She died early of typhoid.
RED SECTIONS
- Writers:
- Dr Dorothy Erickson
- Date written:
- 2010
- Last updated:
- 2011
