Debussy, 1994

William Ronald Helen Ronald / The Estate of William Ronald

“Debussy is small acrylic on canvas painting by William Ronald from 1994 that like the composer it’s named for is subtle, delicate but complex. William Ronald is considered as an innovator in 1950s abstract expressionism for adding a focal point to his form known as a central image. Given this painting is 8 x 10 inches, the artist creates the central image with a single maroon (mixed with white, blue, etc.) large brush stroke - the classic abstract expressionist gesture. The pinkish background, white brush stroke at the top and the greens below the central image are visual poetry as was Debussy’s music was musical poetry. The broken “ronald” signature in the lower right works as an additional compositional element in this small work which is full of creative ingenuity. Add to this artistry, there is the best provenance possible coming from The Estate of William Ronald in this auction. The affordable estimate is $700 - $900 for this original 1994 (fairly rare year in the WRAI) painting by one of Canada’s abstract expressionist masters.” - By Lawrence Brissenden for The Estate of William Ronald