Celebrity photographer captures the stories of fellow adoptees

Setting up the backdrop to uncover adoption backstories, celebrity photographer Jeff Forney readied an exhibit on fellow adoptees. It's called The Innocent People Project.

He says, "That came about when I was photographing actor Ray Liotta." The late actor was known for movies like Goodfellas. On their shoot at Forney's home, he says Liotta asked about some rocks in his bathroom sink.

"I said my birth mother is kind of a hippie, and he said, 'You just said the magic word. You’re adopted.' So I had no idea that the Goodfella was adopted."

That moment spawned a movement. "I’m a photographer of celebrities and musicians, and so it seemed like a fun, natural project to start looking into this." He's now on a mission to make known the stories of adoptees.

Forney's story is this: He's 56 years young. He was born in San Francisco and says he was adopted at six weeks old by "a loving mother and father."

He says, "We have our own questions. We have our own needs, and the more we can talk about it, we can make it okay for others to talk about it."

With the support of his adoptive parents and sister, who was adopted too, he says in college he went in search of and found his birth mother.

"For me, it was like a relief. I now know how I got here."

Forney says he was given up for adoption by an unwed mother. Meeting her, he thought, "I can’t believe this is the person that, you know, I am blood-related to, biologically related. This is the person that gave birth to me."

Forney's, and the more we can talk about it, we can make it okay for others to talk about it."

With the support of his adoptive parents and sister, who was adopted too, he says in college he went in search of and found his birth mother.

"For me, it was like a relief. I now know how I got here."

Forney says he was given up for adoption by an unwed mother. Meeting her, he thought, "I can’t believe this is the person that, you know, I am blood-related to, biologically related. This is the person that gave birth to me."

Forney's exhibit, The Innocent People Project, was showcased this fall by Celia Center. The Celia Center "brings members of the adoption and foster care constellation together through adopt salon support groups, workshops, and events."

That calling to find birth family, he calls a journey to the center of self. "I’m seeing a lot of people feel grounded. They understand their chapter one. They learn their chapter one of life."

By trade, Forney was first in front of the camera as an international model. "Yeah, it was a wild, fun era that time, the '90s of the supermodel, and our, you know, our counterparts were Cindy (Crawford), Naomi (Campbell), and Stephanie (Seymour) and Linda (Evangelista) and all that."

Now, he's a married father of two. In 2024, he's found himself called on to model again.

Forney would also go on to find his biological father but says they don't have much of a relationship.

He continues to photograph adoptees across the country to bring their unique stories to life.

Note from Christine Devine: Full disclosure, I too recently was photographed by Forney. In finding my birth father, I too have found answers to many questions. I was born to a single mother and adopted by Jack Devine when they married. I found my biological father just this year.