Ron Martin was born in London, Ontario in 1943 where he set-up his first studio with Murray Favro. He was one of the original members of the Forest City Gallery and was influenced early in his career by Greg Curnoe. Ron Martin was one of a small group of painters in Canada that considered the act of creating a work a type of performance, which served to remind the viewer that their experience of a material object, such as a painting, was rooted in an experience of themselves.
Martin has had an active studio practice since 1965 with numerous solo and group exhibitions across Canada, in New York, Germany, Japan and France. He is included in a number of major exhibitions including biennials and group exhibitions at the National Gallery and the Art Gallery of Ontario. He is the recipient of numerous awards and grants, is an independent curator, musician and writer and is represented in numerous private and public collections including the National Gallery of Canada, Art Gallery of Ontario, Vancouver Art Gallery, Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and Museum London.
Now Posted – our online exhibition catalogue for “1931-1946: A Generation” exhibition.
Read Online Catalogue for Ron Martin “Back to Painting” December exhibition
View party pics from the September opening reception of our “Three + 3” exhibition.
Ron Martin honoured with a 2012 Governor General Award in Visual and Media Arts
January 14 - February 29 - 2020
“Chroma II” January 14 – February 29, 2020 Our winter group exhibition features paintings that are saturated with glorious colour. Artists included are Jack Bush, Mark Dicey, Jonathan Forrest, James Kirkpatrick, Ron Martin, William Perehudoff, Gordon Rayner, Jonathan Syme, David Urban and Hans Wendt. Chroma is the quality of a colour’s purity, intensity or saturation. […]
November 30 - January 4 - 2020
“Small Gems II” – November 30, 2019 – January 4, 2020 For the month of December in our middle gallery, we have hung salon-style “Small Gems” by gallery artists. Often small works of art are overlooked during exhibitions. The artwork included in our show represents new additions to the gallery as well as gems […]
May 4 - May 23 - 2019
“Power of Placement II” – May 4-23, 2019 We have created vignettes of mid-century modern furniture paired with select artworks by gallery paintings. The seating areas, dining room and living room are all complimented by bold works of art that are enhanced by the furniture. Through the exhibition we show how specific installations can change […]
March 2 - March 30 - 2019
“Chroma” March 2 – 30, 2019 Our March group exhibition features paintings that are saturated with glorious colour. Chroma is the quality of a colour’s purity, intensity or saturation. We are exploring the limits of these characteristics through the recently consigned abstract paintings by Ron Martin and David Sorensen with new arrivals by Jonathan Forrest, James Kirkpatrick and William […]
January 12 - March 2 - 2019
“1931-1946: A Generation” January 12 – March 2, 2019 Click HERE to read Online Catalogue Our winter exhibition celebrates the work of 10 Canadian artists who were born between 1931-1946. Through the artworks of these diverse artists, we explore the relationships, regionalism and artistic influences of Iain Baxter, David Bolduc, Ian Carr-Harris, […]
December 8 - January 11 - 2019
Canadian Watercolours December 8, 2018 – January 11, 2019 In the middle gallery for the month of December we are featuring a curated exhibition of Canadian watercolour artists. Hung salon style, the artists include: Jack Bush, AJ Casson, Paterson Ewen, Franklin Carmichael, Greg Curnoe, Roly Fenwick, Brian Jones, Dorothy Knowles, Ron Martin, Doris McCarthy, […]
October 26 - October 29 - 2018
Art Toronto 2018 – October 26-29 Thank you to everyone who made our 19th year exhibiting at Art Toronto a resounding success. At the opening night gala we were pleased to place a rare Greg Curnoe painting in a Toronto area collection. “View from the Most Southerly Window on the East Wall” (1969-1970) was one […]
April 6 - April 28 - 2018
“The Power of Placement” April 6-28, 2018 For the month of April we have created vignettes of mid-century modern furniture paired with select artworks by gallery artists. The seating areas, dining room and living room are all complimented by bold works of art that are enhanced by the furniture. Through the exhibition we show how […]
December 1 - January 19 - 2018
Ron Martin “Back to Painting” — December 1, 2017 – January 19, 2018 Our December exhibition features rare Ron Martin paintings dating between 1970 – 1987. We have chosen well known examples from Martin’s diverse body of work – from an early “World Painting”, sumptuous late 1970s “Black Paintings”, geometric works from his “2, 8, 32, […]
September 5 - September 30 - 2017
Three + 3 — September 5 – 30, 2017 Our September exhibition includes Greg Curnoe, Murray Favro and Ron Martin paired with James Kirkpatrick, Jason McLean and Billy Bert Young. All six artists came of age as artists in London, Ontario and studied at HB Beal. Curnoe, Favro and Martin were part of the […]
February 22 - March 31 - 2017
On Paper — February 21 – March 25, 2017 March group exhibition featuring a diverse selection of works “On Paper”. Artworks include colourful acrylic ink drawings by Jason McLean & James Kirkpatrick, watercolours by Ron Martin & Hans Wendt, photograph by Susan Dobson, drawing by Kim Moodie, mixed media wall sculpture by Ed Zelenak and […]
March 1 - March 29 - 2014
“Art and Value II” — March 1-29, 2014 Our second annual “Art and Value” exhibition explores the question of “what gives a work of art value?” It seems that news headlines are consistently reporting: “The most expensive piece of art ever sold”, “Record-breaking art sales” or answering “Why art is a good investment”. The prices […]
November 30 - December 28 - 2013
“The Snow Show” — November 30 – December 28, 2013 The snow show is not a Michael Snow show as many have suggested. This summer I acquired a painting where snow was the dominating force. As we put it on the rack for storage (as you can’t sell snow in July), it came to […]
October 25 - October 28 - 2013
Join us at Booth #802 for the 14th Annual Toronto International Art Fair — October 25-28, 2013 METRO TORONTO CONVENTION CENTRE North Building, Exhibit Hall A & B 255 Front Street West OPENING NIGHT PREVIEW Thursday, October 24, 2012 A Benefit for the Art Gallery of Ontario Special Collectors’ Preview 4:30-6:30pm Tickets: $300.00 Opening Night […]
March 5 - March 26 - 2011
Ron Martin “Black and White” – March 5-26, 2011 The Black and White paintings exhibited range in date from 1971 – 1980 and represent Ron Martin’s fascination with the process of painting. Roald Nasgaard states in his book Abstract Painting in Canada that Ron Martin “subjected himself to a rigid set of limitations: a canvas […]