GROUND TRUTHING: AN OUTSIDE LIFE, SOLITARY STORY, COLLECTIVE MYTH BY RONALD WILLIAMS

Ground truthing is the process of verifying abstract data collected remotely with direct, on site,
real observation, to ensure accuracy, as the “true” or correct. For me that truthing applies to
going back over the terrain of a lifetime of outside chances, finding strong and coherent
expressions of my own truths, then painting them into reality.

I paint from the cave walls. Landscapes, memories, personal history and stories. Navigating the
complexities of a solitary story within the collective myth, conceptualized through the geography
of an outdoor life. Notions of place, of seeing, of imagery, form and color. Stories experiential or
origin. Colorful, naïve and relatable. A magical realism.

Ronald Williams (b. 1956, Red Deer, Alberta) was raised in Calgary and has spent much of his life and career deeply connected to Canadian landscapes. He attended the Maritime Forest Ranger School in Fredericton, New Brunswick (1980), and went on to serve as a Forest Officer with the Alberta Forest Service (1981–1988). He later worked as a Forest/Wildlife Technician and Conservation Officer with the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources (1989–2002), and as a Forest Technician with the Nova Scotia Department of Environment, Protected Areas Branch (2003–2020). He retired in 2020.

Williams began painting in 2016. Without formal training or an academic background in art, he is self-taught and works primarily with recycled and repurposed materials. His practice centers on the use of Tremclad rust paint, often applied to salvaged tent canvas stretched over reclaimed window frames.

Williams currently resides in West Arichat, on Isle Madame, Cape Breton Island.