Wednesday, April 18, 2018

Call for Entries - Royal Society of Marine Artists 73rd Open Exhibition 2018

Digital Submission for the Royal Society of Marine Artists's (RSMA) 2018 Annual Exhibition in October 2018 is now open. 

Entries from non-members are welcome and you have until 12 noon on Friday 6 July 2018 to get your entry ready and upload it and complete your submission online
The RSMA seeks submissions of paintings, limited edition prints and sculpture that involve the sea and the marine environment, including harbours and shoreline, traditional craft and contemporary shipping, creeks, beaches, wildlife - in short anything that involves tidal water.
The exhibition is the premier event for the exhibition of contemporary marine art.

It's also an OPEN exhibition - which means artwork selected from the open entry will hang alongside artwork by members of the RSMA.

 The exhibition will be held at the Mall Galleries on 11-20th October (10am - 5pm).
Last year it was a large exhibition with artwork with nearly 400 artworks in all three galleries with a good mix of artwork by members with that selected from the open entry across the galleries as a whole (i.e. no segregation!)

 This exhibition regularly does well as it is also well attended by fans of marine life (i.e. people who own boats!). That said, people who own boats are always very quick to spot errors made by those not familiar with marine life!  I vividly remember standing looking at a painting one year with somebody who knew what he was talking about - and him commenting that the boat would capsize very fast in a swell! Proportions and details are everything for those who love their boats!
Last year's RSMA Annual Exhibition PV in the Threadneedle Space at the Mall Galleries
- home to more contemporary looking artwork
In addition:
  • the RSMA Friends' Evening will be on Tuesday 9th October (Ticket required. 5.30 – 7.30pm)
  • Private View on Wednesday 10th October (Invitation only. 11.00am – 8.00pm) - with 
    • a free guided tour of the exhibition by President Elizabeth Smith PRSMA starting at 11:30am.
    • Opening & awards presentation at 3.30pm with guest of honour.
The very first exhibition of the Society of Marine Artists was prevented from going ahead because of the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939.  Its first exhibition was actually held in 1946 at the Guildhall Art Gallery in the City of London.  In 1966, 20 years after the first exhibition, the Society was granted its Royal Charter and became known as the Royal Society of Marine Artists. Exhibitions moved to the Mall Galleries in 1981
The subject matter of our paintings has gradually broadened over the years to encompass not only sea-going vessels, but yachts and dinghies, the coast and sea-shore, harbours, estuaries and tidal rivers – indeed anything that is essentially marine related.
 Last year I commented in my review
This exhibition has a major emphasis on paintings with an overall lean towards the blue/grey/green colour palette! By way of contrast, there is very little sculpture, drawings and fine art prints. The framing tends towards the traditional rather than contemporary. There's a tad too much gilt on show for my liking which I personally don't think suits paintings of boats!

Gilt tends to go with paintings of traditional ships from the past

The small works hung on the mezzanine wall
One thing worth noting last year is that this is an art society that now has a female President and more evidence of female artists not only getting their work selected but of also doing well in the exhibition (see my review post for more evidence of this)

Below you can find
  • a summary of how to enter the next annual exhibition.
  • a list of prizes
  • an archive of posts about past exhibitions - which contains lots of images of the type of artwork that gets selected for exhibition.

Call for Entries

The RSMA seeks submissions of art inspired by the sea and marine environment.
Artists are strongly urged to submit NEW work NOT PREVIOUSLY EXHIBITED.
If you want to get your artwork into an exhibition then it needs to very good and it needs to be NEW.

 Three reasons why artwork regularly does not make it into an art exhibition are:
  • seen before - in another exhibition (the equivalent of dissing your host!)
  • not presented well (poor framing can undermine good painting - and it's not very "professional")
  • not dry (need one say more?)
The full Terms and Conditions of Entry are available on the website. Details of how artists can apply via the open entry process are set out below.

 In summary:
  • this is an OPEN EXHIBITION which tends to display paintings, drawings, sculpture and prints. 
    • Both members of the RSMA and other artists are invited to submit artwork for consideration.
    • Submissions are welcomed from any artist (over the age of 18) producing artwork on a marine theme
  • There is a constraint the type of artwork that can be submitted 
The subject matter must be essentially marine in nature, relating in some way to tidal waters of the world; topographical, historical, still life, and figure painting are all welcomed.  Paintings of non-tidal rivers, inland lakes and waterways etc are not permissible.
  • what you can submit: 
    • Acceptable media: Oil, acrylic, watercolour, original prints of any media, mixed media, drawings, pastels, or sculpture. 
      • All paintings should be completely dry at the time of delivery / handling (that's code for "they won't get hung or even make it out of the basement if they are not")
      • Fine art prints must be from a limited edition not exceeding fifty.
    • Size constraint: artwork must not be larger than 2.4m along longest dimension.
    • Maximum number of works: 6 (submitted); 4 (hung) i.e. if you enter more than 4 you'll have a lot of journeys back and to
    • All work must be for sale. 
      • priced to include commission of 45%+VAT 
      • Minimum price: £300
      • Minimum price for prints - unframed £120, framed £200.
      • Artists from outside the UK may need to register for VAT as well
Pricing example: a £500 price if sold generates £212 less travelling/courier costs for the artist after (1) commission of £225 (2) VAT on commission of £45 (3) entry fee of £18 
  • All entries are via digital submission  
    • Images must be in JPEG format and under 5MB
    • Deadline for entries is 12 noon on Friday 6 July, 12 noon
    • Submission fee: £18 per work (or £12 per work for artists aged 35 or under), which includes Free Admission to the exhibition (normally £4). There are different arrangements for pieces involving foundry work.
    • Artists submitting work from outside the UK and EU must be registered for VAT BEFORE they submit online.
  • Selection Process has stages:
    • Stage 1: Pre-selection from online entries - notification available Friday 13 July, 12 noon
    • Stage 2 - Receiving Day: Artists who pass Stage 1 are invited to deliver their artwork to The Mall Galleries, London for final selection (on Saturday 11 August 2018, 10am to 5pm)
    • Stage 3: Final Selection of actual artwork in front of a selection panel of RSMA members. Results will be announced online on at 12 noon on 14th August
There's a huge variety of non-boat subject matter in the show.

Prizes & Awards (subject to final confirmation)

There are many prizes and awards available to win, including:

  • The Charles Pears Award: For an outstanding work by a non-member, to be chosen by the RSMA Selection Committee. Any medium. Value £500
  • The Classic Boat Award: Each year the winner of The Classic Boat Award will take home a handsome, hand-crafted sculpture by Astins Sailing Sculptures, which will be given for the most atmospheric depiction of a classic boat in the exhibition
  • The R K Burt Canson Prize: High quality artist paper for a work on paper
  • The Russell and Chapple Canvas Prize: Russell and Chapple, a supplier of canvas and other painting surfaces for over 200 years, is proud to present the Russell and Chapple Canvas Prize, £100 worth of canvas supplies for an outstanding work in oils or acrylics
  • The Sea Pictures Gallery Award: For work depicting the working side of the marine environment. Any medium or sculpture. Value £250
  • The Winsor & Newton Oil Prize: For a notable oil painting. £250 worth of Winsor & Newton materials to be chosen by the winner
  • The Artist Magazine Award: The winner will be interviewed for a feature in The Artist magazine, print and digital edition
  • The Derek Gardner 'Sea & Sky' Award: Value £150
  • The Topbond Marine Award: For works depicting marine engineering or construction activities in harbours, estuaries or marine waters within the UK. Value £250.
  • The RSMA 35 or Under Award: For a work by a non-member aged 35 or under at the time of submission. The successful artist will have a dedicated page in the catalogue featuring the winning work and a short biography.

Archive of posts about past annual exhibitions


Posted by Making A Mark on Wednesday, April 18, 2018
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