William Ronald, Untitled, 1992, watercolour on paper. Gift of the estate of William Ronald, 2002 (45-048.10). Credit: www.bernardclarkphoto.com
Exhibitions
Splash! Watercolours by William Ronald
Samuel J. Zacks Gallery
3 July-2 October 2005
In 1953, a young Canadian artist, William Ronald, organized an exhibition of abstract paintings at the Toronto department store where he worked as a window dresser. The group of participating artists became known as Painters Eleven and their abstract expressionist paintings swept English-speaking Canada into the world of international modernism.
Ronald moved to New York in 1955 where, for much of a decade, his paintings were acquired by major museums and collectors. From the whirlwind of New York, Ronald returned to Toronto in 1965, embarking on an exuberant and successful, life-long exploration of abstract expressionism.
Recently, the Art Centre was fortunate to receive a gift of several Ronald watercolours from the artist's estate. Splash! presented them for the first time since the donation. They offered a bravura display of colour and gesture by a master of Canadian abstraction.
Dorothy Farr
Supported by the George Taylor Richardson Memorial Fund