Ronald Cortez

The youngest in the family of three, his mother dreams of a seaman for a son. Ronald obligingly finished a course on Merchant Marine but that was the end of that. He never stepped inside a real ocean-going vessel to make a living but instead pursued his real dream. As soon as he graduated, he took his brushes out and became a full time painter. Now based in New York, Ronald returns to his hometown Lucban every-so-often and spends a great deal of time in the company of its inhabitants, observing their ordinary daily rituals, and in turn capturing those images unto large canvas of colors and lines and shadows. He has developed a flair for depicting traditional family ties, mores, values, and rural lifestyles. This historic town with its large share of century old buildings and houses did not escape the creative eye of Ronald. They too were transformed and preserved in paintings to last for centuries.