Friends of the RWA

This is going to be such an exciting exhibition! Curator, Nick Moore is offering a talk for Friends on 6th January at 10am in the Kenny Gallery. Numbers are limited. Book online at rwa.org.uk.
See below for more information

Posted • 📣 Coming soon… Off Beat, an exhibition of paintings, drawings and collages by John Eaves RWA

🎨 Curated by Nick Moore, this collection provides a captivating glimpse into the diverse themes and materials that have shaped John's creative expression over fifty years. In addition to his paintings, this exhibition sheds light on John's versatility as a ceramic artist and improvisational musician. Artefacts from both facets of his life are on display, providing a comprehensive view of his multifaceted creative journey.

📆 Off Beat, 12 December 2023 - 21 January 2024, Kenny Gallery. FREE entry.

➡️ Join curator Nick Moore for a FREE guided tour of the exhibition on Saturday the 16 December, from 10 -11 am. There is no need to book, just turn up on the day, and head to the reception desk to let them know you're here for the tour.

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This is spectacular!

Don't miss the talk by Simon this Wed (6th Dec).
RWA 6pm
Exclusive to Friends. Book online at rwa.org.uk

North Bristol Art Trail this weekend.

As well as organising the next FRWA exhibition Jane, Laurel and Monica have been busy on their own paintings.
Come and see.

Posted • 🎉Coming soon… Also Artists: A Staff Exhibition

🥰 This diverse and lively exhibition showcases more than 80 distinctive pieces created by 43 members of the RWA team. It encompasses individuals from various departments, such as the office staff, front-of-house team, freelancers, and Drawing School Tutors. "Also Artists" is dedicated to honouring the unique creative talents of the remarkable individuals who contribute to the daily operation of the RWA.

👩‍🎨 Beyond offering our dedicated staff the opportunity to display their artwork in a professional gallery environment, this exhibition has opened doors for members of the Visitor Experience team to gain insights into different organisational roles and acquire valuable skills that will shape their careers in the cultural sector.

💪 The RWA Visitor Experience Team is the driving force behind the curation, organization, and installation of "Also Artists." We're eagerly anticipating the chance to share this exhibition with you and demonstrate that we too are artists.

👀 Many of the featured artworks are available for purchase in-house or online

📆 07 November 2023 - 07 January 2024, RWA Lower Ground Floor. FREE

🎨 Artwork: Hemali Modha, Bougainvillea 1 (detail)

Posted • 🎉 Coming soon... The Secret Postcard Auction 2023

👀 After much anticipation, here is your first look at some of this year’s amazing Secret Postcards. So far, we have received hundreds of these mini masterpieces from a huge range of artists, including some very big names.

🤫 But, as this is the SECRET Postcard Auction, we will not be revealing any details on who created what until after the auction has ended. This means that you need to use your best arty detective skills to try and identify the makers, or just get ready to bid on the postcard you like the most.

📅 The auction will be open online from 28 October – 9 November, there unlike previous years, there be a special display of all the Postcards at the RWA from the 4 – 9 November so that you can see them up close and personal

➡️Click the link in our bio for more information

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Exhibition 2024
Friends of the RWA

We are delighted to announce that the Friends exhibition will be in the RWA building next year.

Preview 28th March
29th March - 28th April

Here is the team working hard to make this happen for you.




sculpture

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Join us on 26th September for this Special Event.
Hamish Young's talk to FRWA members is part of the Portishead Arts Festival.
Hamish is fascinating talking about his work.

Hamish will talk for about 30 minutes followed by time for questions.
He will also be showing about 25 other works alongside the installation including new works and monoprints. These works are for sale.
All visitors to the installation will be able to choose a shell to keep (for free!), which comes with a certificate of authentication.

Portishead has some wonderful places to eat and drink and with so much going on during the festival it promises to be a wonderful day out.

The talk will be at 10am Sunday 25th September at The Folk Hall, 95 High St, Portishead. BS20 6PR

Friends of the RWA Trips and Visits.
The next trip is to Exeter. Visit the Medieval tunnels under the city and the cathdral.
£32 for members,
£38 non-members
Apply online rwa.org.uk

The Friends Committee has a long and successful history of running brilliantly researched trips. They are open to Friends and non-members.

Don't miss this gem!

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Friends of the RWA Talks. Hamish Young RWA MRSS, Sculptor.
Sunday 24th September, 10am

The Folk Hall, 95 High St, Portishead. BS20 6PR

Hamish will talk about his art work in general and in particular the instillation he has produced as part of the Portishead Arts Festival. Hamish has produced a unique, participatory installation created for and within the community of Portishead.

The ‘FIELD’ is a commissioned artwork created from 27,000 hand-cast plaster shells, moulded from shells collected from around the south west coastline. In this work, each shell represents a local resident - each of the 27,000 people who call Portishead home.

Hamish and ArtPort invite the Friends of the RWA to be a part of this organic art installation. Whether you live in Portishead, or are visiting the festival, there is a shell for you to choose and take away with you to a different place, a new home.

The gradual erosion of the sculpture field will be documented in a time-lapse film and

you will become a part of the story.

Hamish Young is a highly regarded artist, he lives in Portishead., this work is an exploration of his life and history. For more insight into this watch our ARTSTORIES film where Hamish tells his story in

greater depth.

You are invited to explore the Festival after Hamish’s talk.
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Friends of the RWA Talk. Jen Gash.
6th September. 6pm.

From wild card to winner.

Jen is an RWA Network Artist. She will talk about her journey through the Sky Arts Landscape Artist of the Year competition resulting in her being the overall winner in 2018, and her subsequent trip to Macedonia to paint a commission for the Imperial War Museum.

This talk is free and exclusively for Friends of the RWA.
Places are limited. Please book via rwa.org.uk

If you would like to become a Friend, or if your membership has lapsed please join via rwa.org.uk



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Posted • DUE TO UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES THE EVENT FOR MONDAY 3 JULY HAS BEEN CANCELLED. NEW DATE TO BE CONFIRMED.

Presenting... Lubaina Himid CBE in Conversation with Artists 🎤 🎨

Join Lubaina Himid CBE, artist, activist and curator of our current exhibition, Found Cities Lost Objects: Women in The City, in our main gallery while she talks to the winners of the Artist Billboard Commission about their work and the inspiration behind the submissions.

Monday 3rd July. Doors open at 5.30 pm and the talk starts at 6 pm. Paid bar is available🥂

Great shame, but looking forward to finding out the new date.

📣 Tickets are selling out fast, so make sure to grab yours before they go (link in bio⬆️)



Photo Credit: Magda Stawarska, Portrait of Lubaina Himid CBE. Photo

Posted • •
‘Singular Path I’
oil pigment on canvas
200 x 110cm 2023 £6000

Clare Thatcher 'Essence of Place'
Landscape, beyond the imagination

30th June - 22nd July 2023

Clare Thatcher is currently shortlisted to become a RWA Academician, has recently sold a major painting from the 2023 Royal Academy Summer Exhibition & was the recipient of the London Sunny Art Prize, Sunny Art Centre, London (2022). Her works are held in private collections in the UK, USA and Switzerland.
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For everyone who came to Dallas's talk last Wednesday, here are the details of his show in Cornwall.

Posted • An exhibition by Royal Society of Sculptors members at Tremenheere Sculpture Gallery, 1 July - 5 August '23. The work responds to our relationship between landscape and wandering, and references St. Michael’s Way, a pilgrimage route that passes right through the gardens. Artists involved:
Tabatha Andrews, Pauline Antram, Barbara Beyer, Michael Blow, Ann-Margreth Bohl, Philip Booth, Ros Burgin, Doug Burton, Fiona Campbell, Dallas Collins☺️, Chris Dunseath, Emma Elliott/Susie Olczak, Jane Fox, Anna Gillespie, Simon Hitchens, Jane Jobling, Alistair Lambert, William Lasdun, Ian Marlow, Robert Marshall, Seamus Moran, Rebecca Newnham, Kate Parsons, Suzanne Blank Redstone, Mark Richards, Jilly Sutton, and David Worthington.

Posted • Were hanging a Photography show in the gallery today 🙂. Open preview is this Friday 9th June 6:30-8:30pm, come and meet some of the artists and enjoy a drink or two 😀🖼.

Friends Talks.
In July we are taking our talk to Jilly Edward's studio in Bath.
Jilly has kindly offered us access to her exceptional garden and her personal art collection.
Jilly is a textile artist. You can find so many celebrations of Jilly's work online, but here is one we couldn't resist from 8HollandSt.

"There is great integrity in the tapestries of Jilly Edwards; a long and lively career has not dimmed the vibrancy and freshness found in her works one bit. Homing in on an idea - a landscape seen from train windows or over a dry-stone wall - Jilly sets about on the enormous loom in her studio to create with the yarns textures and tones, bit by bit, each as painterly as watercolours on canvas."

July 5th 11am Bath
Numbers are limited so please make sure you book.
rwa.org.uk

RWA talks exclusively for Friends.

Dallas Collins. RWA

We are really looking forward to learning more about Dallas's sculpture, some of which is currently on show in the Kenny Gallery. 

Looking back, Dallas was a contributor to the Together We Rise, a group show in Chichester Cathedral, following lockdown. This was an exhibition of sculptors, who came together to support each other, which celebrated their achievements in difficult times. 

Looking forward, Dallas is involved in Wander-land at the spectacular Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens overlooking St Michael's Mount in Cornwall. 

The talk is for Friends if the RWA. Book your place online at rwa.org

Not a Friend? Join today.

Posted • PAINTINGS!
If you like paintings - we've got something for you at the BS9 Arts Trail. We have every kind of painting - landscapes and portraits, abstract and figurative, oil, watercolour, mixed media and acrylic, BIG and small, you name it, we will have it!

Here is just a very small selection of the amazing work of our artists. If you are looking for a piece of art to brighten up your home, or give as a gift, come along to the Art Trail and buy art direct from the artist. They will be able to tell you about the inspiration for their work and how they made it.

Many artists also have greetings cards featuring their work. These cards are an affordable way of supporting an artist and collecting their work.

Find out more at www.bs9arts.co.uk (link in bio).

Lots of Friends of the RWA exhibiting in BS9.

Posted • You're invited!

The 87 artists taking part in the 2023 Trail will be ready to welcome you to their venues on the weekend of 10th & 11th June.

Come and see what we have been making! Have a walk around this beautiful area of the city and discover some really interesting venues. Many of our venues will have refreshments available too.

To find out more, visit our website www.bs9arts.co.uk (link in bio). You can find trail maps in shops and cafes around Bristol or you can download our map and brochure from our website.

Posted • Really looking forward to seeing you all at my exhibition at Hours in Colston Yard. Everything is up and looking great. .rwa #

Posted • Are you a Bristol-based artist? Are you looking for new opportunities to have your work seen by a wider audience? We have an incredible opportunity for you!

To celebrate our current exhibition, Found Cities, Lost Objects: Women in the City, an touring exhibition curated by , we are inviting applications from Bristol-based artists to create artwork in response to the exhibition in the context of the vibrant, multicultural city of Bristol, which will be displayed on a range of billboards located around Bristol in August 2023.

Found Cities, Lost Objects opened at the RWA on 20 May 2023 and we encourage you to visit the exhibition to prepare for your submission.

Submissions close 16 June 2023

Go to our bio more information.

PLEASE SHARE

Posted • I went along to the preview of the annual exhibition of The Wildlife Art Society International at Nature in Art, Wallsworth Hall, Twigworth, Gloucestershire opened by Sport Beattie of Game Rangers International. Very inspiring so really looking forward to his illustrated talk on Wednesday 31 May. Coincidentally my entry of three baby elephants seems particularly appropriate! P.S. Exhibition closes on the afternoon of Sunday 4 June. .23, , , , .rwa, ,

Congratulations to Rachael Johnson on winning the People's Choice award funded by Cass Arts.
First with her grown up face, and them her delighted face!

Rachael's award is well deserved and "Irene" has such attitude. We love it.

Thanks to all who voted for all your favourites. It means so much to the artists.

All unsold work is available online at rwa.org/shop

Posted • Nature Walk continues at the Gardens Gallery, Cheltenham. Open 10 to 5.rwa

Posted • This is one of several new paintings currently on show at the stunning in Cheltenham
visit https://www.paragongallery.co.uk/the-paragon-gallery
https://www.instagram.com/theparagongallery/

Every month in Floating Circle we publish a Best of the West listing.
We like to support local galleries and Friends who are artists. We search for the best exhibitions in the South West.

Let us know if there is anything you think we should include.
We can't publish everything, but we will do our best.

FRWA Artists studio visit. 

We are delighted to offer the first of a series of visits to artists' studios. These studio visits are exclusive to Friends.

Jilly Edwards Textile Artist. Bath. July 5th at 11am

"Jilly paints with wool. Her subject matter is what she senses from her surrounding reality which she weaves into abstract canvases. The results are a celebration of colour and tone which have a timelessness and show why she is enjoying such a long and illustrious career."

See more work

Jilly is offering a visit to her studio, her fabulous garden and her own private art collection.

We can accommodate 20 people on this trip, dividing into smaller groups when we arrive.

You will travel to Bath independently. We recommend sharing lifts as there is limited free street parking.

We will provide you with more information about the trip once you have booked.

Book online at rwa.org

We have been delighted by the response to the Friends exhibition this year.
We've had a record number of submissions, a record number of pieces hung, and a record raiser of funds.

This is primarily a fund raising event in support of the RWA, but it's incredibly important to us that we give Friends an opportunity to show their artwork and celebrate their achievements.

THERE ARE JUST THREE DAYS LEFT!
Let's make them the busiest yet! TELL everyone you know what a treat awaits them! The weather is on our side.

Sign up for the Friends online art magazine, Floating Circle, to meet the exhibition award winners and much, much more.

Check the Floating Circle for interviews with the FRWA prize winners and much, much more.

I love it when visitors co-ordinate with their favourite piece of work.

TALKS FOR FRIENDS
Dallas Collins. Sculptor. 7th June. 6pm
Youngwood Room

We are delighted to welcome Dallas Collins.
Don't forget to visit RWA's Kenny Gallery before the visit. Dallas is exhibiting.

Dallas will be offering an account of his sculptural journey from lockdown to Santiago de Compostela with the Royal Society of Sculptors. 

He will talk about his recent show 'Together We Rise', showing the process of making the work 'Resurrection' and working towards the Tremenheere exhibition 'Wander-Land' in Cornwall.

Dallas will give us insights into his background ideas and research with regards to Pilgrimage.

You will see the process and some design proposals for the sculpture Dallas is currently working on.

David Cooke

Elizabeth Dymomd

Another Proud Moment

Laurel Smart

Rachel Johnson

Keshani Douglas