Ya La'ford (born in 1979; Bronx, NY) is a versatile artist, educator, muralist, and above all, a conduit between the visual realm and the intricate complexities of human communities. Working across a wide range of media including paint, sculpture, installation, video, and sound, she weaves layered meanings to engage with the universal language of art and create transformative experiences that inspire communal growth.

La'ford holds a Master of Fine Arts in Interdisciplinary Arts from The Art Institute of Boston, and she also earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Florida's Levin College of Law. As a first-generation American of Jamaican heritage, she gracefully navigates between her cultural roots and marginalized communities, utilizing the power of art as a medium of connection. Central to the artist’s mission is the creation of art and spatial experiences that profoundly revolutionize the social, cultural, and historical contexts of creative expression within the human journey.

Her artwork has earned a place in esteemed permanent collections such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Vinik Family Foundation, Nike, Indy500, Grand Prix, the Rays, and Rowdies, and she was selected to create art for Super Bowl 55, held in Tampa. Notable institutions featuring her work in exhibitions include the Baker Museum, Tampa Museum of Art, Orlando Museum of Fine Art, Asia Contemporary Art Show, Yeelen Gallery, and the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art. Additionally, La’ford’s artistic exploration has taken her to Bangkok, Thailand; Beijing, China; Cairo, Egypt; New Smyrna Beach, Florida ; and Ogden, Utah where she has engaged in art installations and residencies.

Ya’s portfolio encompasses sculpture, installations, mural designs, and structural exterior façades, all infused with a profound understanding of geometric design, symbols, and ethnography. Through her creations, she reconstructs the threads that bind spaces and the transcendent paths that shape our individual and communal destinies. Her artistic practice is an invitation to experience the profound connections that exist between art, community, and divine intervention.

Ya La'Ford

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