Tuesday, May 29, 2018

Call for Entries - Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition 2018

You are now able to upload your digital submission for the 2018 Annual Exhibition of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters. 

You have until 12 noon on Friday 17 August 2018 to get your digital entry ready and upload it and complete your submission online.

a wall in the Main Gallery last year
This post highlights:
  • Exhibition - a summary of venue and number of paintings to be exhibited 
  • a summary of the Call for Entries process 
    • who can enter 
    • what you can enter 
    • how to enter 
    • the timetable 
  • brief reflections on past years 
  • a summary of the prizes and selection process
  • plus what this exhibition has looked like in the past. At the end are links to all the blog posts I've written in previous years about the exhibition, who won prizes and who got selected - and links to their websites!
This is the first annual exhibition under Tim Benson PROI, the new President of the ROI, and it will be interesting to see what changes are made in how it works and what gets selected for the exhibition.

I think I'm seeing more of an emphasis on painting in oils....
The ROI seeks work in oils and is the only national art society devoted exclusively to oil painting.

EXHIBITION & Events


The exhibition is held at the Mall Galleries between Wednesday 28 November and Sunday 9 December - making 11.5 days in total. Hours are 10am - 5pm but the exhibition closes at 1pm on the last day .

'Paint Live': On Saturday 2nd December (the first weekend of the exhibition) there is an Oil Painting Competition called 'Paint Live' organised by the Royal Institute of Oil Painters. The aim is to encourage the practise of oil painting direct from the subject and it provides opportunities for artist participation with the ROI. Previously there has been an evening event so this looks like a new departure.

I like to provide feedback about the exhibition metrics associated with the previous year's exhibition and the success of non-members in getting their work hung,

The 2017 Annual Exhibition:
  • displayed 300 paintings - limited to the Main and North Galleries only - which I found very surprising given the popularity of oil painting.
  • Of these: 
    • 271 paintings in the main open exhibition (compared to 269 in 2016) 
    • 29 paintings by young artists aged 35 and under (all non-members) hung in a section devoted to the Winsor & Newton Young Artist Awards in the North Galleries
    • 61% were by members and 39% by non members - which in my opinion should aim to improve - in favour of non-members
    • However this means some 90 paintings were by oil painters who did not qualify for the the W&N Young Artist Awards (ie aged 35+)
  • 74 artists were selected from the Open Entry - and almost all were artists who did NOT have an affiliation to any other FBA society based at the Mall Galleries
a favourite corner in the North Gallery last year

The CALL FOR ENTRIES - Process and Key Points


Here is a summary of the KEY POINTS
Acceptable media: Oils.Acrylic and water soluble oil paint is acceptable if it is framed as an oil, so as not to spoil the general appearance of the exhibition. Glazing or wide mounts between painting and frame, as in watercolours, are not acceptable.
  • The deadline for submissions is Friday 17 August, 12 noon
  • Entry for the 2018 competition is digital and ONLINE. 
  • Images must be in JPEG format and under 5MB
  • Submission fee which includes Free Admission to the exhibition (normally £4)
    • £18 per work at the time of submitting 
    • £12 per work for artists aged 35 or under
  • These are the terms and conditions
  • This is the Call for Entries Page
I RECOMMEND that:
  • You review the images from past exhibitions (see blog posts reviewing past exhibitions at the end of this post) 
  • Have a go and enter two of your best works. The cost relative to the achievement and the experience is negligible
  • This exhibition is particularly supportive of Young Artists and all those oil painters under the age of 35 should feel encouraged to apply
Young Artists Awards wall last year

Who can enter

  • The competition is open to all artists over the age of 18. 
  • It is also open to international entries - you don't even have to be live or work in the UK (However make sure you read the notice about the need to register for VAT to get your artwork into the country)

What you can enter

  • Eligible media includes:
    • oil 
    • acrylic paint or waterbased oils is eligible if framed like an oil painting. (Personally I think they ought to make the point that other media also needs to be used like oil paint can be)
    • Glazing or wide mounts between painting and frame, as in watercolours, are not acceptable.
  • Works should not be larger than 2.4m along the longest dimension.
  • Paintings should be completely dry at the time of delivery.
  • Work must have been completed in the last three years and not exhibited in London previously.
  • Works must be framed for final selection.
  • All work must be for sale. Minimum sale price: £300 
  • Maximum of six works submitted. (Maximum of four works selected)
Some professional artists need to wake up to 'the facts of frames'
Note some of the small works last year were glazed - and this year glazing renders work ineligible for hanging
- and some of the frames in the exhibition did their artwork no favours, 
you should ALWAYS see the art not the frame!
  • Artwork by non-members tended to be smaller which might account for why more sold in numerical and percentage terms. 
  • There's also very clearly an appetite for very realistic paintings of still life involving botanical subjects

The Timetable

  • You can check from Friday 24 August, from 12 noon whether or not your painting has been selected for the final judging in front of the selection panel. 
  • You will be notified on 10th October if your work has been selected

Prizes & Awards

There are many prizes and awards available to win, including those listed below. I've categorised them according to the type of prize.

Entries are reviewed and assessed by The Selection Committee. This comprises artist members of the Society and membership is rotated annually - which means tastes change and your submission may find favour this year!

Cash Prizes

  • The Phyllis Roberts Award - An award of £2,000 to encourage and support young painters
  • The Stanley Grimm Prize - Two awards totalling £700, to the painters whose work receive the most votes from visitors to the exhibition
  • The Alan Gourley Memorial Award - An annual prize of £1,000, awarded for a painting of outstanding merit
  • Winsor & Newton Young Artist Awards (for artists aged 35 or under)
    • First Prize: £1,000 Winsor & Newton Fine Art Materials 
    • Second Prize: £600 Winsor & Newton Fine Art Materials 
    • Third Prize: £400 Winsor & Newton Fine Art Materials
  • The Menena Joy Schwabe Memorial Award - An award of £250 for an outstanding oil painter
Art Materials & Media Sponsors
  • Winsor & Newton Non-Member Award - £150 worth of Winsor & Newton Fine Art Materials
  • L. Cornelissen & Son - An award of a contemporary version of a Victorian Oil Painter's equipment
  • Frank Herring Easel Award - An award of a versatile easel

Marketing / Raising Your Profile

  • The Artist Magazine Award - The winning artist will be featured in a forthcoming issue of The Artist magazine, print and digital editions
  • The Dry Red Press Award - The winning work will be published as a greeting card by Dry Red Press in their 'Prize Winners' range.
Other
  • The Le Clerc Fowle Medal - for an outstanding group of paintings


Previous Exhibitions



You can find links to my previous reviews of exhibitions below.
Links for oil painters
Posted by Making A Mark on Tuesday, May 29, 2018
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2 comments:

  1. Onwe Kingsley Ndubuisi Saturday, June 02, 2018

    Nice one. Wishing the exhibiting artists best of luck!

    ReplyDelete
  2. JulesFriday, June 08, 2018

    Hi. You have the prices for submissions incorrect on your blag. It's £18 and £12 for under 35s.

    ReplyDelete

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