The Theatre of the Self

Common knowledge has it that Ronald is primarily a historical figure whose contribution to Canadian art lies in the formation of the free-thinking Painters Eleven in the 1950s. This is correct enough, but concomitant with it is the tacit assumption that his choice to downplay painting temporarily for a career in broadcasting implies that his later years were substantially a matter of showmanship and/or charlatanism.... [Ronald is] one of the more genuinely fascinating characters in Canadian culture, one to whom we are indebted for much more than a spirit of internationalism running counter to what was thought of in the 1950s as the choke-hold of the Group of Seven.