Ya La’ford’s art pushes boundaries and space. She brings the zeal and work ethic of a former attorney to what she does as an artist.
La’ford is an interdisciplinary artist. She makes the paints she uses. The images she creates meld thick textures with natural and ready-made elements. Her paintings frequently feature labyrinths in some form and have a tendency to escape from the canvas.
With works shown nationally and internationally, her artistic vision is shaped from surroundings, including growing up in Jamaica, moving to New York and then to south Florida.
“I consider myself a native. I transitioned between countries and cultures and really developed an understanding of the visual world we live in,” La’ford said. “I live a dream. I mentor, teach and demonstrate that I am living my passion through taking a risk. It’s really recognizing what you’re here to do and embracing that.”
La’ford says she values the connection between art and community — for her, artwork is not static but interactive, a philosophy that helped draw her to the the Pianos in Pinellas public art project, which showcases painted pianos and musical performances throughout the county from Nov. 25 to Dec. 31.
Pianos in Pinellas is based on a similar concept launched by accident in England in 2008. A man moving a piano could not get it inside his house. He left it outside on the sidewalk, and people started playing it. Soon, the spontaneous interactions it fostered led to public art projects that placed pianos on the streets of London, New York and numerous other cities.
“We’re taking it one step further,” said Colin Bissett, Pianos for Pinellas' project director for Clearwater Arts Alliance, an art advocacy group that is helping put the project together. That next step? The 11 upright pianos in Pianos for Pinellas have been painted by select local artists (see list below), including La’ford, Agnes Black, Steve Spathelf and Junior Polo.
Once the instruments are put on display, people will be able to play them for free and share their videos on Youtube.
Locations include Stirling Commons and Frenchy’s Outpost in Dunedin and Pelican Walk and Pier 60 on Clearwater Beach.
The pianos will remain on view until Dec. 31. After that they will be collected and auctioned, with the proceeds benefiting grants and scholarships offered by the Clearwater Arts Alliance.
The group plans to do the project yearly, at least for a little while. “Everything has a cycle,” Bissett said. “Why not pianos?”
For La’ford, who teaches art and serves as a volunteer on various charitable groups’ boards, interaction with the community through art is important. Being a part of this project is also a great match for what she tries to showcase — exploring the functionality of art.
“I’m taking all of what I know and try to explode it on this piano,” La’ford said. “This is a dream, and fulfilling my life’s mission.”
La’ford’s piano incorporates the instrument’s architecture into some of the themes seen in her art, including mazes. She wants viewers to be transported to another place when they sit down to play.
“It’s just multidimensional — embracing the activity as well as the art — the aesthetic. It’s exciting.”
Play these funky pianos
Island Way Grille 20 Island Way, Clearwater
Pelican Walk Plaza 483 Mandalay Ave., Clearwater Beach
Stirling Commons 730 Broadway Ave., Dunedin
Cleveland Street Various Locations
Greektown Grille 1230 Cleveland St., Clearwater
Frenchy’s Outpost 466 Causeway Blvd., Dunedin
Pier 60 1 Causeway Blvd., Clearwater Beach
Clearwater Marine Aquarium 249 Windward Passage, Clearwater
Winter’s Dolphin Tale Adventure 300 Cleveland St., Clearwater
Ruth Eckerd Hall 1111 N McMullen-Booth Road, Clearwater
Pinellas County Courthouse 315 Court St., Clearwater
Nature’s Food Patch 1225 Cleveland St., Clearwater
Randy’s Wholesale Pianos 5047 Ulmerton Road, Clearwater
Participating artists: Gallery 1356: June Harben, Sylvia Shanahan, Lizbeth Graham and Liz Smith; Beth Warmath and Pinellas Academy students: Ya La’ford; Agnes Black; Steve Spathell; Ann Feldshue; Junior Polo; Liz Smith; Don Scali
Immortalize your Pianos in Pinellas performance by uploading a video to Youtube and emailing a link to pianosinpinellas@gmail.com.
This article appears in Nov 20-26, 2014.