P11 RCA
1926 - 1998
Canadian
My Garden
oil on canvas
signed and on verso titled and dated 1953 on various labels
35 x 57 in, 88.9 x 144.8 cm
Estimate: $40,000 - $60,000 CAD
Sold for: $97,250
Preview at: Heffel Toronto – 13 Hazelton Ave
PROVENANCE
The Isaacs Gallery Ltd., Toronto
Christopher Cutts Gallery, Toronto
Private Collection, Toronto
LITERATURE
Iris Nowell, Painters Eleven: The Wild Ones of Canadian Art, 2010, page 66, the similar 1953 painting entitled Slow Movement reproduced page 68
EXHIBITED
Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, 74th Annual Exhibition, 1953, catalogue #74
This remarkable work by William Ronald bears a striking resemblance to the widely exhibited painting Slow Movement from 1953, in the collection of the Robert McLaughlin Gallery. Also painted in 1953, My Garden is a somewhat smaller work on canvas and is more restrained; essentially, the thin black lines which dance from form to form in Slow Movement are absent here, creating a serene yet visually stunning abstract vista. Painted in the same year Painters Eleven was officially formed, My Garden retains a few visual references to representation, such as the orange horizon line and organic shapes, yet it also feels fresh and spontaneous. In 1952, Ronald spent time in New York studying with Hans Hofmann and no doubt also learned a great deal from the New York arts scene, where he saw works by Abstract Expressionist artists such as Franz Kline and Adolph Gottlieb. My Garden perfectly captures Hofmann’s advice to Ronald: “Don’t try to do everything in one painting. Let the next painting finish it.”
Estimate: $40,000 - $60,000 CAD
All prices are in Canadian Dollars
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