Ronald Davis

Abstract Illusionist Painter, 1937-2025

"Illusions are real.” – Ron

Ronald W. Davis passed away on November 19, 2025 at home in Arroyo Hondo, NM at the age of 88, surrounded by family. 

A renowned, internationally-known painter since the mid-1960s, Ronald's artwork has been acquired by private collectors and museums around the world, with over 70 solo exhibitions mounted in art galleries from coast to coast. 

His work is in the permanent collections of The National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.; the Museum Of Modern Art, New York; the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; The Chicago Art Institute; The Tate Modern in London; the San Francisco Museum of Art; the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, The Netherlands; The National Gallery of Australia; and others.

Ronald is known for his use of geometric abstraction, abstract illusionism, shaped canvas paintings, and 3D computer graphics. The many mediums he has explored include oil, acrylic, watercolor, ink, pencil, lithography, silkscreen, drypoint, aquatint, etchings, wood, resins and fiberglass, dry pigment, encaustic, plastic, computer-aided painting, giclée, and "Pixeldust" renderings on aluminum and glass. Electronic music was another passion, compelling him to create sound-sculpture compositions using Buchla synthesizers and advanced sound systems. His work was relentlessly diverse, and the level of intensity and commitment to seriousness he tried consistently to bring to the work is self-evident. As Ron always said, "The paintings will take care of themselves." 

Born in Santa Monica, California and raised in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Ronald answered his calling as a painter in 1960, traveling to San Francisco to study at the San Francisco Art Institute with encouragement from his car-racing and painter friend, the late Charles Strong. Ronald later moved to Los Angeles, building a successful career over the next 25 years. In the early 1970s, he co-designed with architect Frank Gehry the unusual "tin house" studio-residence in Malibu.

In 1990, burdened with the stress of the Los Angeles "fast lane" lifestyle, he retreated to the high desert of New Mexico, seeking a quieter and more spiritual existence. Purchasing land on the Arroyo Hondo mesa and collaborating with architect Dennis Holloway and anthropologist Charles Cambridge of the Diné nation, he built a series of Navajo hogan-inspired dwellings and studio spaces near the edge of the Rio Grande gorge.

In Los Angeles, Ron quickly found a community that supported him: His first dealer and mentor, Nicholas Wilder, who helped launch his career; curator and museum director Walter Hopps; Judy (Gerowitz) Chicago; Ron Cooper; Larry Bell; Ken Price; and many others. His supportive New York arts community included art historian Barbara Rose; Frank Stella; Clement Greenberg; Leo Castelli; Tibor de Nagy Gallery; and his longtime dear friend and colleague, New York artist Ronnie Landfield. In New Mexico, he was supported by close friends and colleagues who understood him; by friends from the local community who faithfully assisted him in the studio, on the land, and on his building projects; by the Harwood Museum of Art; by the Town of Taos; and by his galleries, including Jaquelin Loyd Fine Art of Ranchos de Taos, Charlotte Jackson of Santa Fe, and by his primary gallery, 203 Fine Art of Taos.

In 2021, Ron began a new series of over fifty paintings. He finished his last painting four days before his passing – strong-arming age, pain, and the inevitable. He titled the piece "Timer." 

He is survived by his wife of 20 years, Barbara; son Basil Davis; son Kermit Davis; stepson Colin Bentley; stepdaughter Nicole Bentley; granddaughter Baetina Royce; cousin Linda E. Stanton; niece Laura Ditges (Jeff) and family; niece Karen Whitehead and family; nephew Michael Whitehead and family; and several grand-nieces and grand-nephews. Ron was preceded in death by his parents, Joseph and Laura Davis of Cheyenne, Wyoming; and by his sister, Janet Davis Whitehead, also of Cheyenne.