Ronald Lee Oliver. I am a San Diego born, lifelong self-taught artist, plein air, and studio painter who captures the vivid essence of subjects that interest me. I don't limit myself to a genre or "style" but prefer to work on an eclectic mix of subjects. Each is rendered in oil paint with varying degrees of realism or impressionism with selective vision. My paintings are done both “plein air” with a portable artists pochade style easel or on a larger easel in the studio. I consider the framing of the finished art very important to my vision of the completed work and therefore I offer much of my art pre-framed as envisioned and intended by the artist. I also make custom jewelry in 18kt gold and silver with gems and cabochons.
The Hawaiian island of Kaua’i is named “The Garden Isle” for good reason. We saw so many beautiful flowers and plants it would be impossible to share them all with you, but here are a few sights for your viewing pleasure. At night, the warm, moist air was full with the heavenly scent of pikaki and plumeria. The beach seen in this video was about 10 steps away from the front door of our hale. Some of the photos were taken from that vantage or from the back lanai. We were there to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. It was a wonderful time during the full super moon which is also present in some of the photos. Be warned–if you watch, you will want to go there!
I’m still creating art in various forms while honing the acting chops in training at a local acting studio. I’m working in a feature film later this month, but in the meantime, here’s a matching men’s ring and bracelet I made in the last few days. Making these involved melting and alloying of gold and silver, hammering, sawing, filing, sanding, brazing and/or welding, setting the stones, and finally polishing of the pieces that I designed to create a finished, cohesive presentation that shows off the curated turquoise cabochons. As always, these are available to purchase and gift at reasonable prices. Let your friends who may want something like this know. Contact me for inquiries.
The Christmas movie feature I worked on up in Hollywood is in post production (editing, effects, sound, etc.) and hopefully will be in release for this Season’s crop of Christmas movies. It has a romantic drama theme with two attractive leads struggling to find their connection during the Holiday season. I costar as the grandfather who is the head of the law firm where the male romantic lead (my grandson) is a young hotshot attorney. It should be a fun watch.
While waiting for this film to go live, I’ve been auditioning for other roles. I’ve actually turned down a few based on scheduling, unsuitability, or other reasons. As an actor, you’ve got to be picky, within reason–the roles you accept define your brand, after all.
The good news is, after a typical audition process involving, searching for available roles that fit my general profile, self video taping to “sides” provided by the director and subsequent Zoom meetings, I have accepted a new supporting role in a new film project. It’s about a father who is struggling with life in a loveless marriage. This one is to be filmed in late Summer, locally, here in the San Diego area. Right now, I’m waiting to receive the full script and learn who my costars will be.
So that’s just a brief update on the life of this actor, for now…
For those who don’t know, I have returned in full force to one of my artistic passions, namely, acting. Yes, that’s right. I was once a very serious actor who made the time to audition for and appear in leading roles in stage plays and films. I also appeared in TV commercials, and did a bit of voice over work.
As an actor, I played in comedies, sang in musicals, emoted in dramas, and even fought and tumbled with knives on stage in a Shakespeare production!
Recently I’ve returned to this craft, as I enjoy it so much and truly believe I have a talent to offer here. My focus is on acting for film and television. I’m also doing commercial work and modeling.
In the past, my performances received very good reviews by some very knowledgeable people (hint, hint, Old Globe). I did have an agent, back then, who got me so very few appropriate auditions that it became discouraging. The necessity to make money at other endeavors came to the fore–if I wanted to pay the rent and eat anything other than ramen noodles.
Now, years later, with a retired career behind me, I am diving in to the acting profession, full swan dive, once again.
I’ve had some luck, with some paying gigs including a supporting role in a feature filmed up in Hollywood. That’s great but I’m very actively training and seeking more opportunities. I’m enrolled and participate in acting classes regularly.
So…this blog, in addition to my numerous other artistic endeavors, will share the life of a dramatic actor in his senior years.
You’ve seen my posts and added pages for my handmade jewelry items, but I’ve finally stepped up to creating some pieces in solid 18k gold with fine stones. Working gold is similar to working with silver, but it takes some capital outlay and there is waste when sawing and filing (I try my best to catch it all for later smelting). Here are pics of these first two rings with the solid 18k bling. One is a spectacular, pick-of-the-litter, Ethiopian Welo Opal, the other is a gem quality Chrysoprase cabochon. They will soon be available in the *store page* for my handmade jewelry creations. Hope you like them…
I recently learned (with lots of help from YouTube) to sew.
That’s right–I bought an old Singer sewing machine and have began sewing some small items. But first, I had to take the sewing machine apart and replace all 5 of the gears and reset the timing. All of this effort has led me to explore the art of textile and fabric design.
I’ve got a Design Shop at Spoonflower, where you can see my first ventures in this field.
None of the designs are available for purchase yet, but that will come soon enough.
Here’s an example of one of my designs along with a link to the Spoonflower shop…
There’s so much hacking, fraud, and data theft happening out there in the wild that I finally added ssl certificate protection to my website. Now, anyone who may have scruples about making a purchase over the internet can rest assured that all data on this site and the store shopping areas is encrypted, secure, and protected. And, once you’ve taken the leap and proceeded to checkout, you are taken to PayPal to finish up, adding an extra layer of security and guarantee.
It was expensive…but you’re worth it 🙂
Click on the little green seal (if in desktop browsing mode) at the top of the page to see!
…so, what are you waiting for? The holidays are approaching fast and the gift of jewelry or art can be a wonderful surprise for your loved ones.
I’ve branched into a different realm of creative effort.
While my easel has a freshly primed linen canvas on it right now, I’ve also been working on another separate area of creativity for the last two years or so…
Jewelry making has always been on my bucket list of skills to explore and above you can see a few of my ring creations. I like to use sterling, fine silver and 18kt gold, along with various stones and cabochons. Each piece is entirely designed and hand crafted at my work bench from scratch, from crucible to jewelers bench. Here is a short video showing the elegant, long oval, Sleeping Beauty turquoise ring in the photo on the right, above.
And here are examples of my work in thumbnail format…
A sample of various designs by RLO
If you have interest in creating a special, custom gift for you or a loved one, let me know. I have some exceptional opals (and other stones) right now that are just screaming to be made into incredible, one-of-a-kind rings. You can email me at rlo@ronaldleeoliver.com
For now…just go to the menu bar at the top of this page and click on “Store,” to see the links to my paintings and my jewelry creations.
The Winter rains have brought the Ramona Grasslands back to life.
The last time I visited the Preserve, the scene was dire–the parched grass and oaks were severely stressed. Many of the trees were beyond recovery, as evidenced by the piles of firewood left by the Forestry Service. But… the recent rainy Winter has turned the situation around. Currently, this Spring, there are live streams of flowing water crossing the grasslands.
I recommend you visit the grasslands soon, before the arid months dry up the profundity. I took my camera along today on my plein air painting outing and captured some images. Here they are in a short video for your enjoyment…
The finishing flourish for any oil painting is the artist’s signature.
I use two signatures to finish my pieces.
I sign my paintings with my last name, “Oliver,” or with my initials, “RLO.” I use the latter when it fits better than the larger, “Oliver” signature.
The signatures above are a montage from various studio and plein air works. The simple lines of my signature indicate and compliment the style of painting conveyed in the works. The brush strokes remain as applied, informing the viewer by impression, rather than tightly rendered or controlled imagery.
San Diego has some great places for the plein air painter to park their easel and capture the beauty of nature with brush and paint.
One of the best places in the county is the nature reserve at San Elijo Lagoon, between Solana Beach and Encinitas. The lagoon and tidal estuaries meander East to West from the inlet at the coast. The tidal flow extends inland for almost two miles, flowing under the I5 Freeway before eventually ebbing to a stop in Rancho Santa Fe. I painted at a place along the Rios Avenue Trail, which is on the Southwest side of the Lagoon, on a peaceful, foggy, October morning. I can recommend the many locations at the lagoon as a places one could return to again and again and find something new to paint, each time.
Here are some photos and video I took to share with you. You’ll also see my completed painting at the bottom of this post.
A panoramic view of the Rios Trailhead, looking East at San Elijo Lagoon.
Birds and jumping fish break the stillness now and again…
Lifting fog on a mild October morning.
Here’s a short video that gives a 360 view.
Here is the painting after about an hour and a half of painting, when I decided to take it home. I made a few small touches and corrections back in the studio.
16×20 Rios Trail at San Elijo
…and here is the finished piece, “Rios Trail at San Elijo”
Rios Trail at San Elijo Lagoon, 16×20 oil on panel
Sometimes, posting a small digital image of a #pleinair oil painting won’t convey the sense of texture and detail. So, to help you get an idea, here are some detail images from my recent San Diego Plein air paintings…
Batiqutos Clearing, along with three of my San Diego plein air paintings is on display and available at the Solana Beach Library in Encinitas, California…or in my online gallery.
Four of my San Diego plein air paintings are showing at the Solana Beach Library in Encinitas. The art will be on site June 11th through August 3rd, 2016. There is a reception open to all on Saturday, July 16th at 2:00 to 4:00pm.
All four paintings are plein air works, in 16×20 inch landscape format. Each is identically framed in solid wood with dark, espresso color, red distressed undertones and a gold liner. They look very elegant in these frames! Click on an image in the slideshow below to learn more about that painting and to see larger images.
Plein air painters have many different surfaces to choose from on which to create their art.
There is duck canvas, linen, canvas panels, linen panels, birch board and many other choices for the outdoor artist. I’ve tried many of these and have come to my own conclusion and method that works best for my process. That’s why I like to use gessoed and oil primed hardboard panels for painting plein air. Some of the benefits of using panels instead of canvas is, they’re portable–you can carry many in a panel holder when travelling–they won’t tear or dent, and they never have the issue of sunlight coming through the back like you can get when you use canvas outdoors.
I made a video that shows how I prepare inexpensive hardboard panels with gesso and oil primer. They make a great surface to paint on. You might want to try using the methods I’m goint to share to see if you like painting on them as much as I do. Here’s the video if you’re interested:
The working artist has to wear many hats, one of which is the “Framers Hat.” The following framing tips show how I treat my paintings to ensure they look professionally done and will serve my clients and galleries well.
If you plan to sell paintings yourself through an online presence without the intermediary of a gallery or other representation, to keep costs down you should know some things about framing. If you do work with galleries, they will appreciate that your works arrive ready to hang with a professional look, both front and back.
Some tools that will come in handy are:
A Tape Measure.
Wire “Nippers.”
Cordless Drill Driver
A typical 16×20 panel in a quality, wooden frame.
I use stainless steel hardware that will never rust. You don’t want your reputation tarnished by rusty parts a few years down the road. Usually I paint en plein air on hardboard panels as seen in the photo. Panels are portable, easy to mount and will not tear like a canvas could. It’s also easy to sign, date and add any other info to the back of the painting with a permanent “Sharpie” type marker.
Here’s a closer look at the information I put on my panels…
I like to add:
The Title.
My Signature(s).
The Date and Place I Painted the Painting.
A Copyright Symbol and Year.
What I Used to Conserve the Painting.
In this case I used Dammar Varnish, so I’ve written that down in the lower right on the back of the panel. This will help future owners and conservators when it comes time to clean and re-seal the painting. They will know what solvents and cleaners are necessary to do their work and will appreciate that I’ve helped them out with this message. You can see the screws I use are stainless steel, self tapping #6×3/8″. I prefer using these short screws because some frames have very thin face material and longer screws can actually penetrate through the front and ruin a costly frame. That’s not good! The 3/8 length is strong enough to hold most any painting up to about 18×24 inches. Beyond that, you may want to ensure your frames are more substantial and can take the longer screws without any issues. I don’t think the 3/8″ screws are adequate to hold larger, heavier frames. You can also see the “offset clip” I’ve used to hold the panel tightly in the frame opening. These clips come in different offset depths and it’s good to have an assortment because frames have differing rabbet depths and sometimes you may use a thicker panel or canvas so it’s good to be prepared.
I like the single-eye, D-Ring style, stainless steel hangers. These too are strong enough to hold small to medium-sized paintings but if you frame larger works, it would be good to get the heavy-duty hangers with two screw holes, so you can be assured they will hold the extra weight.
You can see the tips of the self-tapping screws in this photo. No need to pre-drill pilot holes when using these–saves lots of time. Just put the screw on the magnetic tip of your drill driver and place it where you want, then pull the trigger…in it goes!
I think it’s best to use vinyl-coated framers wire for the hanging wire. It protects your fingers (and your clients) as well as makes the installation easier. If you’ve ever had your finger pricked or had a strand of framing wire go under your fingernail, you’ll know why I recommend this 🙂
I use a slip-knot loop to attach the wire to the D-Rings at both ends. Leave about 4 or 5 inches of extra wire at each end in addition to the length needed to span the width from the D-Rings at each side.
Tighten up the slip-knot, then wrap the extra wire around the main length about a 10 or 12 times…
then cinch it down tight and cut off the excess, leaving a nice presentation with no fly-away ends. The D-Rings should be placed as near to the edge of the frame as possible without showing. This ensures that the painting hangs close to the wall.
I also like to add a business card with my web URL on it glued to the back. I use simple white glue for this because it will hold up well and dries clear. The finished wire should be good and taught without much slack. Here you can see that with the D-Rings about 6 inches from the top of the frame, the wire flexes up when hanging by less than two inches, leaving about 4 inches of room for the hanger to be hidden from the top of the painting. This also makes sure that the top of the frame does not drift away from the wall.
That’s it! It’s not too difficult to Do It Yourself and make sure your art will hang correctly and with a professional appearance. Your clients and galleries will appreciate your art all the much more when it’s framed and ready to hang with professional, quality materials and techniques.
You can see the screws I use are stainless steel, self tapping #6×3/8″. I prefer using these short screws because some frames have very thin face material and longer screws can actually penetrate through the front and ruin a costly frame. That’s not good! The 3/8 length is strong enough to hold most any painting up to about 18×24 inches. Beyond that, you may want to ensure your frames are more substantial and can take the longer screws without any issues. I don’t think the 3/8″ screws are adequate to hold larger, heavier frames. You can also see the “offset clip” I’ve used to hold the panel tightly in the frame opening. These clips come in different offset depths and it’s good to have an assortment because frames have differing rabbet depths and sometimes you may use a thicker panel or canvas so it’s good to be prepared.
The finished wire should be good and taught without much slack. Here you can see that with the D-Rings about 6 inches from the top of the frame, the wire flexes up when hanging by less than two inches, leaving about 4 inches of room for the hanger to be hidden from the top of the painting. This also makes sure that the top of the frame does not drift away from the wall.
