Randal Owl

Photographer Randal Ford has elevated his art to soaring heights by applying a minimalist approach to enhance the sophistication of an image. By focusing on the details of his animal subjects, the American artist produces striking images that highlight their characteristic features.

Ford is most famous for his photographs of animals in the studio. They are situated under lights and set against a backdrop so Ford can produce a stunning contrast that could not be captured with a candid shot. He also plays with concepts of color contrasts, such as placing a black rooster against a solid black background or a black and white bull set against a soft gray. He selects each background so that the animal is the sole focal point of an image, allowing for no distractions.

Though he favors animals as subjects, Ford’s photography also involves portraits of people. He has an almost mystical talent for portraying the humanity of his subjects, highlighting the qualities of a person that extend beyond the readily viewable content of a photograph.

He supports a number of organizations dedicated to the well-being and conservation of animals, both wild and domestic. He contributes his time and talent to organizations such as Project Survival’s Cat Haven, which concentrates on preserving wild cats through education and relocation efforts. The proceeds from his book Good Dog benefit Emancipet, an organization committed to making veterinary care accessible and affordable to everyone with a pet.

Ford continues to work out of his studio in Austin, Texas, where he focuses on his photography and conservation advocacy. 

On 1stDibs, browse a vast selection of Randal Ford’s portraits, figurative photography and prints.

Used to refer to a time rather than an aesthetic, Contemporary art generally describes pieces created after 1970 or being made by living artists anywhere in the world. This immediacy means it encompasses art responding to the present moment through diverse subjects, media and themes. Contemporary painting, sculpture, photography, performance, digital art, video and more frequently includes work that is attempting to reshape current ideas about what art can be, from Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s use of candy to memorialize a lover he lost to AIDS-related complications to Jenny Holzer’s ongoing “Truisms,” a Conceptual series that sees provocative messages printed on billboards, T-shirts, benches and other public places that exist outside of formal exhibitions and the conventional “white cube” of galleries.

Contemporary art has been pushing the boundaries of creative expression for years. Its disruption of the traditional concepts of art are often aiming to engage viewers in complex questions about identity, society and culture. In the latter part of the 20th century, contemporary movements included Land art, in which artists like Robert Smithson and Michael Heizer create large-scale, site-specific sculptures, installations and other works in soil and bodies of water; Sound art, with artists such as Christian Marclay and Susan Philipsz centering art on sonic experiences; and New Media art, in which mass media and digital culture inform the work of artists such as Nam June Paik and Rafaël Rozendaal.

The first decades of the 21st century have seen the growth of Contemporary African art, the revival of figurative painting, the emergence of street art and the rise of NFTs, unique digital artworks that are powered by blockchain technology.

Major Contemporary artists practicing now include Ai Weiwei, Cecily Brown, David Hockney, Yayoi Kusama, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami and Kara Walker.

Find a collection of Contemporary prints, photography, paintings, sculptures and other art on 1stDibs.

Color photography evokes emotion that can bring a viewer into the scene. It can transport one to faraway places or back into the past.

The first color photograph, taken in 1861, was more of an exercise in science than art. Photographer Thomas Sutton and physicist James Clerk Maxwell used three separate exposures of a tartan ribbon — filtered through red, green and blue — and composited them into a single image, resulting in the first multicolor representation of an object.

Before this innovation, photographs were often tinted by hand. By the 1890s, color photography processes were introduced based on that 1860s experiment. In the early 20th century, autochromes brought color photography to a commercial audience.

Now color photography is widely available, with these historic photographs documenting moments and scenes that are still vivid generations later. Photographers in the 20th and 21st centuries have offered new perspectives in the evolving field of modern color photography with gripping portraiture, snow-capped landscapes, stunning architecture and lots more.

In the voluminous collection of photography on 1stDibs, find vibrant full-color images by Slim Aarons, Helen Levitt, Gordon Parks, Stefanie Schneider, Steve McCurry and other artists. Bring visual interest to any corner of your home with color photography — introduce a salon-style gallery hang or another arrangement that best fits your space.