Call for Entries: The Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2027

The Call for Entries for the 128th Exhibition by the Pastel Society in January 2027 has been published on the Mall Galleries website. 

Artists working in pastel and contemporary dry media are invited to submit their work for the Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2027

This post summarises what you need to know. 

• Submissions are ONLINE ONLY and 
• open from 17 August to 20 November 2026

Benefits of Exhibiting with The Pastel Society

This is an OPEN ART EXHIBITION. If you submit and are selected for the exhibition your artwork will be

• included in the catalogue
• seen by visitors to the Mall Galleries - and it gets a LOT of visitors
• viewed online via the Mall Galleries website and that of the Pastel Society - before, during and after the Exhibition
• eligible for a number of prizes & awards - and some have significant cash awards (see below)if you want to become a member, you first need to get exhibited via the open entry
• may well sell - but ONLY if you pay attention to what I have to tell you below about pricing and sales!!

Pastel Society | Annual Exhibition 2027 | Key Facts and Dates

What drew me to the Pastel Society was the thought of being surrounding by other people fascinated by dry media in particular
Curtis Holder

Venue: Mall Galleries, The Mall, London
Exhibition Dates: Wednesday 27th January - Saturday 6th February 2027
Private View (invite only): Wednesday 27th January 2027 - 5pm to 8pm, official opening at 6:30pm

Submissions: ONLINE ONLY and open until 12 noon Friday 20 November 2026
Notification of selection: Friday 4th December 2026, 12 noon
Receiving Day (if selected): Saturday 16th January 2027 10am to 5pmCollection of unsold work: Thursday 11 February 2027 10am to 5pm
Awards and Prizes - see listing near the end of this post

One of the walls in the Pastel Society's Annual Exhibition in 2026

Call for Entries

What you read below is most - but not all - the terms and conditions of entry and information about what and artist must and must not do. 

It's down to you to read the Full Details, Entry Terms & Conditions

Find out more about how to enter:

Review: The 127th Annual Exhibition of The Pastel Society

The 127th Annual Exhibition of The Pastel Society starts another year of annual exhibitions by the leading national art societies who are members of the Federation of British Artists - and hold all their annual exhibitions at the Mall Galleries. It's on until 7th February 2026.

For those who don't know, I'm an avid fan of pastels and pastel artwork and used to also produce pastels and exhibited at the Pastel Society in the 90s.

Facts about the exhibition - and how to see it

This is an OPEN exhibition and is not limited to work by members and it contains 377 artworks in.....

All types of pastel including: soft pastel, hard pastel, oil pastel, ink pastel, water-based pastel, conté crayons or sticks, sanguine, and other dry mediums that are similar in their application including charcoal, chalk, and pencil.

You can see the exhibition at the Mall Galleries until 7th February 2026.

• Open every day (10am-5pm)
• Admission £7, Free for Friends of Mall Galleries and under 25s. Concessions available. No booking required.

You can also see the artwork as follows

• on the Pastel Society website
• all the individual artworks online - on the buyart@ the Mall Galleries website
• you can view some of the artwork online in the online catalogue. The paper catalogue is available from the Gallery
• view all the artwork - on the walls - in my Facebook Albums
• East Gallery
• North Gallery
• West Gallery - to be uploaded
• The artwork I liked typically gets a photo of just that work.... unless there's another reason for photographing it on its own.

Cover of The Pastel Society Catalogue for the 127th Annual Exhibition

A week ago I attended the Private View - and that's when my problems started - and why this review has taken so long to write. 

A very popular Private View

It was very crowded and I was unable to sit down. I'd noticed a slight problem with my feet before I went - but standing up for two hours and not moving much really lacerated them. I had problems walking home, even more when I removed my shoes and I couldn't really walk very much for the next 2-3 days. Needless to say - but I will - with my mobility issues, I do not mess about when my feet scream very loudly at me!

I managed to photograph the artwork in the East and North Galleries at the beginning of the PV. So I returned on Sunday intending to do the West Gallery - but ended up talking (and sitting) for a long time with both the President and the Vice President - which was really interesting!

So I then went back AGAIN yesterday - and this time 

• I saw the exhibition properly i.e. not so full of people that you can't see the art as happened at the PV, 
• photographed the West Gallery - to be uploaded very soon
• started making my notes about the exhibition - for this review - in the new Apple Journal.

So this is my review....

The 127th Annual Exhibition of The Pastel Society

This post provides you with:

• events - and when they're on
• prizes - who won what
• what's different about the 2025 exhibition
• what I liked and....
• ....what I think can be improved

Events - and when they're on

I wrote a post about the Events Programme  last week, after I realised I couldn't walk and wouldn't be visiting the exhibition again last week!

• See Pastel Society Events Programme

Prizes - who won what

The Prizewinners with their Certificates

This page provides info about the prizewinners.

Winner of The Pastel Society Prize
Sunrise behind Tower Bridge by Benjamin Hope PS NEAC ROI RP RSMA

The top cash prizewinners were

• Caran d'Ache Prize (£1,000 for the best work in the exhibition as selected by Caran d'Ache) 
• Winner: Sheila Goodman PS, Autumn Glory
• Pastel Society Prize - £1,000 for the best work by a member, selected by the Pastel Society Council.
• Winner: Benjamin Hope NEAC PS ROI RP RSMA, Sunrise behind Tower Bridge
• The Yoshimoto Prize £1,000 for an outstanding work in any dry medium by a non-member.
• Winner: Sarah Manolescue ROI, Flowers in the Window

The one I liked the best was Benjamin Hope's artwork - not least because he seems to have done it on a new kind of wafer thin support. As he's also an oil painter, I'm guessing it is aluminium with some sort of abrasive material mixed in with the gesso.

Entries for PASTEL SOCIETY's 127th Annual Exhibition 2026 - closing soon

You have just under three weeks left to get a submission into the Annual Exhibition 2026 of The Pastel Society.

I've been trying to get round to this post for a while, which makes it much later than usual. However you still have time to start and finish a new work, or review what you did last year that you are proud of and submit that to the exhibition.

Benefits of Exhibiting with The Pastel Society

This is an OPEN ART EXHIBITION. If you submit and are selected for the exhibition your artwork will be

• included in the catalogue
• seen by visitors to the Mall Galleries - and it gets a lot of visitors
• viewed online via the Mall Galleries website and that of the Pastel Society - before, during and after the Exhibition
• eligible for a number of prizes & awards - and some have significant cash awards (see below)

Pastel Society | Annual Exhibition 2026 | Key Facts

What drew me to the Pastel Society was the thought of being surrounding by other people fascinated by dry media in particular
Curtis Holder

Venue: Mall Galleries, The Mall, LondonDates:
Exhibition Dates: Wednesday 21st January - Saturday 7th February 2026
Private View (invite only): Tuesday 20th January 2026 - 5pm to 8pm, official opening at 6:30pm

Submissions: ONLINE ONLY and open until 12 noon Friday 14 November 2025

Notification of selection: Friday 28th November 2025, 12 noon
Receiving Day (if selected): Saturday 10th January 2026, 10am to 5pm

Collection of unsold work: Thursday 12 February 202610am to 5pm

Awards and Prizes - see listing near the end of this post

Call for Entries

Find out more about how to enter:

• Open Calls - Pastel Society on the Mall Galleries website
• and BELOW.....

Who is eligible to enter?

• This is an OPEN exhibition and is not limited to work by members.
• There is also no restriction of where you live. It's open to artists in the UK, EU, and outside the EU
• Any artist over 18 may submit.

What media is acceptable for entries?

• All types of pastel including: soft pastel, hard pastel, oil pastel, ink pastel, water-based pastel, conté crayons or sticks, sanguine, and other dry mediums that are similar in their application including charcoal, chalk, and pencil.
• Mixed media and three-dimensional works are welcome where pastel or another dry media is the primary medium.
• HOWEVER.....

ALL work that is submitted must have a full description of the media used and any process which has been employed in the finished work beyond drawing and painting, e.g. printing, photography. 

Please note that failure to do this may result in unnecessary rejection on the grounds that work deserves to be judged on a like for like basis and because any buyer should be made aware of what they are buying.

Bottom line - no sleight of hand! This exhibition emphasises the use of dry media and the expertise of the artist in using it.

 

What can you enter?

Analysis of Sales at The Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2025

After the annual exhibition of the The Pastel Society (PS) and my review of the exhibition comes my metrics post!

• Which price ranges achieved the best sales? 
• Is this the same for members and those selected from the Open Entry - or does it vary?

This is another of my regular posts reviewing sales and prices after the annual exhibition. It covers:

• General commentary on 
• sales of artwork and how and when art is sold
• Buyers at the Mall Galleries - where the PS hold their annual exhibition
• Sales at the 2025 Annual Exhibition of the Pastel Society focusing on:
• the number of sales and 
• the prices that pastel artwork sold for 

The reason I'm writing this post is because I'd like to see:

• more artists do better
• more artists make sales
• more artists improve their annual income from their artwork
• THROUGH more intelligent pricing of their artwork

Bottom line, the most realistic price for your artwork is the price which enables a sale. Otherwise, why bother pricing at all?

General Commentary on Sales of Artwork

How and when art is sold

These days art sales are typically generated in one of three ways

• the associated online website for the artwork - and the fact this goes online before the exhibition in the gallery opens
• sales at the Private View - where it's a common expectation that a goodly proportion of artwork will be sold given this is an opportunity for artists to be nice to collectors!
• sales while the exhibition is open to the public.

In the past, art societies used to have Buyers' Views for people:

• who were known collectors and/or
• had previously bought at the exhibition.

Art Societies don't seem to be doing these as much these days. Maybe because of the online exhibition - which is published well in advance of the exhibition opening and the fact people are more used to online sales. It's certainly the case that artwork regularly sells before an exhibition opens

Nevertheless, I still think there's a case to be made for the "pampering time" for previous art buyers/collectors when they don't have to fight for space with the legions of "friends of the artist" and can actually see the work properly.

I don't go to as many private views as I used to, mainly because to my mind they should be artists and buyers and "influencers" in the absence of a private view. 

I left this one early because of the crush - see Review: The Pastel Society 126th Annual Exhibition (2025) 

It's nice to have an event for friends of the artist BUT if it creates such a crush that it causes people to leave and/or deters sales, then that is a problem. 

My solution would be to introduce a constraint for all members and those selected via the open entry of strictly one friend only at the PV.

After all, friends can come any time, but artists typically only come once and it's on PV day! Plus buyers and collectors do like to meet the artist - and I see precious little effort by art societies generally to making sure that can happen. 

On the day of the PV, it's perfectly possible to stage manage a different focus at different times eg buyers at lunchtime; members getting together in the afternoon and friends allowed in the evening. That way we might actually get to see some art. I find I always have to go back if I go to the PV - just to be able to look at the art properly.

Sales have also been less than usual due to the constraints on people's budgets in the last couple of years. It seems to be easing slightly - but sales are still not yet back to where they used to be - and it's worth thinking about how to help them along....

Who are the buyers at the Mall Galleries?

Essentially annual exhibitions at the Mall Galleries are about AFFORDABLE ART for most of those who visit, view and buy art.

This is about my well known mantra characterising buyers at the Mall Galleries. 

Typically they are essentially "middle class, middle aged and middle income"

They typically like buying artwork priced at less than £1,500 - and they like it even more if it is priced at less than a £1,000.

You should bear this in mind as you review the charts and commentary below and as you check the profiles of the price ranges of artwork sold in the charts below

Sales at The Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2025

This is a chart of the sales at the recent Open Exhibition 2025 of the Pastel Society.

I got my numbers by going through the data on sales available from the online exhibition.

Analysis of the number of artworks sold by price range
in The Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2025

The Pastel Society exhibited 382 artworks and sold 84 paintings (22% of the hung artwork). 

This is a marked improvement on the 2024 performance (see below).

Review: The Pastel Society 126th Annual Exhibition (2025)

I recommend you go and see the 126th Annual Exhibition of The Pastel Society. It opened at the Mall Galleries last week and is on for another two weeks.  This is an OPEN exhibition and is not limited to work by members and it contains 382 artworks in.....

All types of pastel including: soft pastel, hard pastel, oil pastel, ink pastel, water-based pastel, conté crayons or sticks, sanguine, and other dry mediums that are similar in their application including charcoal, chalk, and pencil.

In addition this is what The Pastel Society is about

“Membership of The Society will be granted through a strict assessment of technical skill, originality, innovation, enthusiasm and a willingness to promote the objectives and activities of The Society.”

I've visited three times so far

• at the PV last Tuesday when the Mall galleries were packed with people; 
• again on Thursday morning - with the aim of photographing the exhibition for all those who cannot get to see it in person and 
• again yesterday morning. Can I recommend viewings on Sunday mornings - they're nice and quiet!

The Private View - and this was after some people had gone home!

This post provides you with:

• facts about the exhibition - and how to see it
• events
• prizes
• what's different about the 2025 exhibition
• when is a pastel not a pastel

Facts about the exhibition

You can see the exhibition at the Mall Galleries until 8th February 2025. 

• Open every day (10am-5pm)
• Admission £6, Free for Friends of Mall Galleries and under 25s. Concessions available. No booking required.
• Catalogue is available at the Gallery - or you can view it online

You can also see the artworks in the exhibition ONLINE via

• the Mall Galleries Shop website - 60 artworks to the page + you can see the media used easily 
• The Pastel Society website 
• my photos of the three galleries in which it is held on my Facebook Page
• West Gallery (78 items) - mainly artwork by members
• East Galleries (22 items) - a mix of members and Open Entry
• North Gallery (47 items) - mainly artwork via the Open Entry 

The artwork I liked typically gets a photo of just that work....

The West Gallery

Artist of the Year Masterclass: Week 2

Below you can find the details of all this week's classes in the brand new series of Artist of the year: Masterclass. It's the same tutors as last week - but different topics this week.

Week 2 of Artist of the Year: Masterclass

As before the the programmes are

• on Sky Arts every evening this week
• the first programme starts at 6pm and lasts 30 minutes
• the second programme starts at 6.30pm
• so basically an hour of tuition covering two topics every evening.

So far as I am aware, these classes are only currently accessible to those living in the UK via Sky Arts (on Freeview). You can also watch on catchup if you subscribe to either Sky or Now TV.

If you follow the Artist of the Year Facebook page or Instagram account you'll get a reminder about each programme - which will include a list of the materials being used.

Here's the Facebook post for the two programmes this evening. (Sorry I've had to replace the Instagram video one - as the video just appeared as a great big blank space on my blog!!)

How did you find the new series of Artist of the Year: Masterclass last week?

It's certainly not a definition of masterclass that I'm familiar with. The artists are dealing with basics of the sort usually taught to beginners or improvers.

Speaking personally, I also found it difficult to set aside the hour each evening to watch "live". However, since I subscribe to NOW TV I was able to access the programmes already broadcast on catch-up. My preference would be to see two back to back programmes each week on one set day - over a period of weeks.

I also found that it was very easy to tell which are artists are experienced at teaching at this level - because it was very clear that they

• prepared their lesson well in advance 
• delivered the instruction in a very structured way
• didn't drop art terms into what they said without explaining what the term means
• had very clear instructions as to what materials are required
• knew how best to teach online
• did a good demonstration

Not all tutors were experienced and competent at teaching at this level.

Postscript: 

It did occur to me that maybe this skills development series is being done with the aim of improving the skills levels of painters applying for and getting selected for the two series of Portrait Artist of the Year and Landscape Artist of the Year.

What do you think?

SUBSCRIBE IF YOU LIKE 'MAKING A MARK' - and keep up with my reviews

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Artist of the Year: Masterclass launches 2nd December

Sky Arts have come up with a brand new idea - Artist of the Year: Masterclass for all those aspiring artists out there. This post provides you with ALL THE DETAILS of what's on offer:

• which artists are involved
• what they are teaching

I've got a few problems with the words they use which are clear evidence of marketing over accuracy. That said, it's probably going to be a very popular series. Just a pity they gave it the wrong name....

The NEW Concept: Artist of the Year: Masterclass 

Tai Shan Shierenberg will be giving masterclasses along with other artists

Each masterclass will focus on a different subject or technique to help audiences understand the basics of painting and drawing, with classes covering everything from exploring tone and Alla Prima painting to composing a landscape, botanical flowers and even animal portraiture.

• Target audience: budding artists at home
• Methodology: 
• live tutorials from a variety of talented artists who have previously participated in either PAOTY or LAOTY
• demonstrations of "easy-to-learn techniques to budding artists at home"

The odd thing is I wouldn't ever describe this as a "Masterclass"

A Masterclass in my eyes is something 

• established artists may take to raise their game - the artist who has got beyond beginner but wants to progress to Intermediate or Advanced Levels.
• by learning about the things that acknowledged experts do which makes their artwork that much better.

Whereas the description is coming across to me as if it's about taking people who would like to be artists to a rather advanced level in one fell swoop. Which is:

• very ambitious 
• absolutely impossible!

Next time they maybe need to be properly innovative and get away from marketing people who haven't got a clue and conventional ideas about marketing and pandering to the novice and actually do something useful - such as directing their attention to creating people who will do well in PAOTY or LAOTY e.g. teach them about the pitfalls - and how to overcome them!

Jury is out for me at the moment. I am easily impressed by solid and good quality instruction - and I know that many of those who are delivering tutorials are very experienced teachers. Equally - and sadly - I know that not all are....

So below I'm going to highlight those who are delivering classes on a face to face basis.

The Artists delivering Masterclasses

The artists are mostly those who did well in PAOTY or LAOTY or are otherwise wellknown and well liked!

Links embedded in their name are to their website. Plus I've included links to Instagram where possible.

I'm commenting on what they have achieved as an artist and also whether or not they appear to be a regular teacher/instructor via classes or books.

Past winners of Portrait Artist of the Year

Entries for Pastel Society's 126th Annual Exhibition 2025 - closing soon.

Somehow or other I neglected to do my normal Call for Entries for the Annual Exhibition of The Pastel Society. Below is me making up for this omission in time for the deadline foe entries to the 126th Annual Exhibition 2025

This is your chance to take part in a contemporary, adventurous and creative show, presenting a positive challenge to those with pre-conceived ideas about pastel and dry media.

This is an OPEN ART EXHIBITION. If you submit and are selected for the exhibition your artwork will be

• included in the catalogue
• seen by visitors to the Mall Galleries - and it gets a lot of visitors
• viewed online via the Mall Galleries website and that of the Pastel Society - before, during and after the Exhibition
• eligible for a number of prizes & awards - and some have significant cash awards.

Pastel Society | Annual Exhibition 2025 | Key Facts

What drew me to the Pastel Society was the thought of being surrounding by other people fascinated by dry media in particular
Curtis Holder

Venue: Mall Galleries, The Mall, London
Dates: 

• Exhibition: Wednesday 22 January - Saturday 8 February
• Private View: Tuesday 21 January
• The Pastel Society Art Event Evening: Tuesday 28 January, 6pm to 8:30pm

Submissions: 

• ONLINE ONLY and open until 12 noon Friday 15 November 2024
• Notification of selection: Friday 29 November, 12 noon
• Receiving Day (if selected): Saturday 11 January 2025, 10am to 5pm
• Find out more about how to enter:  
• Open Calls - Pastel Society on the Mall Galleries website
• and BELOW.....

This is a video about the exhibition and the Call for Entries

Call for Entries

Artists are invited to submit work in pastel and dry media for the Pastel Society’s 
126th Annual Exhibition, BENCHMARK, sponsored by Caran d'Ache.

Who is eligible to enter? 

• This is an OPEN exhibition and is not limited to work by members.
• This exhibition also has works exhibited by people who live outside the UK. There is no restriction of where you live. It's open to artists in the UK, EU, and outside the EU
• Any artist over 18 may submit.

What media is acceptable for entries?

• All types of pastel including: soft pastel, hard pastel, oil pastel, ink pastel, water-based pastel, conté crayons or sticks, sanguine, and other dry mediums that are similar in their application including charcoal, chalk, and pencil. 

Mixed media works are welcome where pastel or another dry media is the primary medium. Such work should be submitted with a full description of the media used and any process which has been employed in the finished work beyond drawing and painting, e.g. printing, photography.

Bottom line - no sleight of hand! This exhibition emphasises the use of dry media and the expertise of the artist in using it.

What can you enter?

Review: The 7th Derwent Art Prize (2024) Exhibition

This is a summary of my thoughts about the Derwent Art Prize Exhibition at gallery@OXO. This is in addition to:

• my review of the prizewinners - see Derwent Art Prize Exhibition 2024 - Prizewinners
• my Making A Mark Facebook Page Album of views of the exhibition - The Derwent Art Prize 2024

The aim of the Derwent Art Prize Exhibition is to 

• reward excellence by showcasing the very best artworks made in pencil by artists from around the world.
• showcase c.80 artworks in an exhibition.

The Prize invites artists to submit the very best 2D and 3D artworks created in any pencil, including colour, water soluble, pastel, graphite and charcoal pencils.

This year, the Judges shortlisted just 68 artworks, however 2 artworks did not make it on to the walls because they got stuck in Customs! See the end for tips for getting your work through Customs

I'm writing this post essentially for all those who might like to submit artwork to the next Derwent Art Prize because, although you can see the images online, you cannot see how they are presented. 

That said, judgement is always on the basis of the digital image of the art.

Artwork at the entrance
varying sizes, subjects and presentation

My perspective on the Derwent Art Prize Exhibition 2024

First off, the main point I want to emphasise is that there is a lot of exceptionally good artwork in this exhibition. I'm guessing that the reputation of the Prize - and the fact it's still going - means that this prize attracts many more professional artists these days as well as young / aspiring / emerging artists.

For me, the appeal of the exhibition is that:

• it often presents novel perspectives on the very ordinary 
• as well as extraordinary insights into the very unusual. 
• ALL delivered while demonstrating an exceptional degree of technical accomplishment.

Essentially, it's NOT artwork which is technically good but actually dull - as much hyperealistic artwork can be.

Nor is it exciting concepts which are then delivered by people lacking in skills associated with creating art - which is the sort of art I hate.

To get selected, the artwork has to move mind or spirit AND also be executed by somebody who demonstrates they're very good at wielding the media used for pencil art.

For me, it has come on a lot since the very first exhibition - which I remember really well because it demonstrated news of thinking and recording in pencil media.

I'd just like to see some 3D artwork next time!

PS There are emphatically no cats, dogs or horses or any other sort of animal mammal in this exhibition! There is one very dead bird.... (Just saying....)

The exhibition demonstrates a wide diversity in terms of

• styles
• subject matter
• size
• age of the artist
• country where the artist lives

It is truly international - with over 6,000 entries by 2,324 artists from 77 countries. 

That means it's getting an entry way bigger than most of the prominent open art exhibitions of national art societies!  One might be tempted to ask what is this art competition offering that other open exhibitions are not. My answer would be "big cash prizes". Any time you have an art competition with very significant cash prizes you get a lot of entries.

Derwent Art Prize Exhibition 2024 - Prizewinners

Yesterday, I visited The Derwent Art Prize 2024 Exhibition at gallery@oxo in London and this post is a review of the exhibition and the competition.

the Derwent Art Prize is now very much an international prize and one seen as prestigious to the careers of young up and coming illustrators. (from my review of the 2020 Exhibition)

This is my first post about the Derwent Art Prize - focusing on the prizewinners. 

My second will come shortly and will focus on the exhibition. 

I'll also be uploading my photos of the exhibition to a folder on my Facebook Page

The Derwent Art Prize - the competition

What's remarkable about this art competition is that:

• It has more entries than most national art societies: This competition received more than 6,000 entries 
• It attracts entries from a very large number of countries: entries were received from 77 countries,
• 68 artworks - of a very high standard - were selected for The Derwent Art Prize Exhibition 
• Five artists received over £13,000 in prizes at the opening, on Wednesday 3 April 2024. (see below)

At the end of this post you can see my posts reviewing previous exhibitions.

The exhibition is free to visit at gallery@oxo, London

• from 11am to 6pm, from 4th April to 13th April, and 
• from 11am to 2pm on the closing day, 14th April 2024, 
• with daily artist demonstrations.

Derwent Art Prize 2024: Prizewinners

Three of the prizewinners

The shortlist and winners were chosen by an international panel of art professionals: 

• Sergio Gomez, Miami-based artist and gallery director; 
• Curtis Holder, London-based artist; 
• Valérie Sonnier, artist and professor, Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris; and 
• Helen Waters, Director, Cristea Roberts, London.

First Prize (£4,000 and a year's supply of Derwent Art Products)

This was awarded to June Collier for Hetty in Hospital 1.

FIRST PRIZE
June Collier Hetty in hospital - 2020
oil paint and pencil on canvas - 80cm x 65cm

All four selectors were profoundly moved by the depth of sensibility displayed in this work, stirring profound emotion.

Review: The Pastel Society 125th Annual Exhibition (2024)

I'm very pleased to say that this year I'm very impressed with the 125th Annual Exhibition by The Pastel Society. I've also been hearing lots of very positive comments by those who have visited in recent days.

The Pastel Society Exhibition on the afternoon of the Private View

It's very obvious to me that a lot of well directed effort has gone into making this a much better exhibition to mark yet another benchmark in its history. This is after all the oldest pastel society in the world which held its first exhibition in 1899!

• It had 1300 entries - of which 366 were hung (28%)
• There were excellent numbers at the Private View yesterday 

Private View: Speeches starting in the evening
- with Sarah Bee's very colourful artwork behind the speaker

• BOTH the content and hanging of the exhibition is hugely better than the one which I criticised last year. 
• It's much more colourful this year and looks all the better for it
• each of the walls is well anchored by strong paintings - with the most obvious being the end wall of the West Gallery where Sarah Bee's artworks absolutely sing out across the entire gallery
• artwork is grouped to very good effect - eg a wall of landscapes

A Wall of Landscapes by different Pastel Society members

• There's a great diversity of artwork on show - from abstracted to hyper-realistic

Abstracted landscapes by Malcolm Taylor on the left
Hyperealistic still life by Ian Rawlings in the centre of the wall

• The PS Annual Exhibition is also back in its "near the beginning of the year" slot which I tend to think of as being a very much better time for art exhibitions and sales - as there's absolutely no competition from summer weather and outdoor pursuits and holidays! 
• However "last year" was only in May - just 8 months ago 
• so the Society has also done very well to put on a second annual exhibition in this short timescale.
• The pricing on the wall looks as if most have had a rethink about the range of prices that help promote sales in the current climate - although not all artworks did. I've been hoping to see some evidence that artists were becoming more sensible and this exhibition seemed to me to be the first one where pricing has changed. I still think the starting price should be £300. There's still a lot of scope for sales at the bottom end of the range.

Richard Rees, the President of the Pastel Society, told me yesterday that of the 1300 entries 

• a third were monochrome
• a third were portraits

I have to say that neither are reflected in the same proportions in the exhibition itself - although there's a good representation of both. Those entering next year's exhibition might like to bear this in mind.

Call for Entries: Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2024

The Pastel Society has published its Call for Entries for its 125th Annual Exhibition in January next year.

The Pastel Society seeks the best in contemporary pastel and dry media, combining technical skill with creative originality for the Society's 125th Exhibition.

This is an OPEN ART EXHIBITION. If you submit and are selected for the exhibition your artwork will be

• included in the catalogue
• seen by visitors to the Mall Galleries - and it gets a lot of visitors
• viewed online via the Mall Galleries website and that of the Pastel Society - before, during and after the Exhibition
• eligible for a number of prizes & awards.

READ ON If you work in pastels, oil pastels, charcoal, pencil, conte, sanguine, or any other dry media and would like to achieve a higher profile for your artwork - and maybe a sale or a prize!

The 125th Annual Exhibition of the Pastel Society: 
SUMMARY of the Call for Entries

• Artists are invited to submit work for exhibition alongside members of the Pastel Society
• All submissions are online. 
• DEADLINE for entries - for a digital image, application form and fee - is noon on Friday 24 November 2023
• All artwork submitted is judged virtually, after which selected works should be delivered to Mall Galleries, London, for inclusion in the exhibition
• Exhibition Dates: 23rd January (PV Day - Invite only) to Saturday 10th February 2024.
• Venue: Mall Galleries, The Mall, London

Below you can find MY version of the Call for Entries. Note that:

• it includes TIPS and additional comments which those who have not entered before may find useful.
• Some of those who have entered before and been unsuccessful might also like to have a read.

Submission: key dates and points to note

ALL artworks must be submitted online. 

It means that the quality of your digital image is ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL.

REQUIRED READING: On the Mall Galleries website you can find:

• Call for Entries for the Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2024
• Full Details, Entry Terms & Conditions
• Website to use for Entries
• Exhibition Contact: exhibitions@mallgalleries.com

Note: The Frequently Asked Questions Page (FAQs) appears to have disappeared from the website.

TIP: If you don't read all the relevant information, do NOT be surprised or irritated if your entry is not selected.

Below is a summary of the stages of entry.

1. ELIGIBLE ARTISTS: Who can enter?

This is an OPEN exhibition and is not limited to work by members.
This exhibition also has works exhibited by people who live outside the UK.

• Any artist over 18 may submit.
• There is no restriction of where you live. 
• It's open to artists in the UK, EU, and outside the EU

Review: 124th Annual Exhibition of the Pastel Society

I visited the 124th Annual Exhibition of The Pastel Society on Wednesday. The theme of this year’s Pastel Society Exhibition is ‘Pastel Without Boundaries’.

This post covers:

• general observations about the exhibition - compared to the previous 17 previous annual exhibitions - all of which I have seen and commented on (except for last year when I was immobile post surgery)
• artwork I liked
• things which IMO need to change and/or improve

Some exhibition metrics will follow after the end of the exhibition.

This post is later than I intended as I ran into major problems yesterday with Blogger absolutely refusing to upload images. So I waited 24 hours and it's now back to normal. However this left me more time to mull over over my thoughts on the show. 

Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2023: Catalogue Cover

The Annual Exhibition is on at the Mall Galleries until 3rd June 2023. 

• Admission is £5 but is Free for Friends of Mall Galleries, Friends of the Pastel Society, and under 25s.
• You can read the catalogue online via Issuu
• The Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2023 | Award Winners - has been posted on the Mall Galleries website, so I'll not cover those in this blog post unless they happen to be one I was impressed by.

You can see my photos of the exhibition on my Facebook Page

• West Gallery [UPDATE] where I comment further on some of the points made in this review
• East Gallery
• North Galleries

Observations about the Exhibition

All that follows needs to be viewed from the perspective that I am a very big fan of dry media and pastels - so some of the comments made below are hard to make - but I think need making. 

Call for Entries: Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2023 + TIPS!

The Call for Entries for the 124th Annual Exhibition of The Pastel Society has been published.  

The 124th Annual Exhibition of the Pastel Society

• Artists are invited to submit work for exhibition alongside members of the Pastel Society
• Dates: 24th May - 3rd June 2023 Venue: Mall Galleries, The Mall, London 
• DEADLINE for entries - for a digital image, application form and fee - is noon on Friday 24th March 2023

The Pastel Society seeks the best in contemporary pastel and dry media, combining traditional skills with creative originality for their 124th Annual Exhibition.

If selected for the exhibition your artwork will be 

• seen by visitors to the Mall Galleries - and it gets a lot of visitors), 
• viewed online via the Mall Galleries website and that of the Pastel Society 
• eligible for a number of prizes & awards. 

READ ON If you work in pastels, oil pastels, charcoal, pencil, conte, sanguine, or any other dry media and would like to achieve a higher profile for your artwork - and maybe a sale or a prize!

Note: All quotes come from the official Call for Entries.

 

Pastel by Felicity House PS

SUMMARY of Call for Entries

Below you can find MY version of the Call for Entries. Note that:

• it includes TIPS and additional comments which those who have not entered before may find useful.
• Some of those who have entered before and been unsuccessful might also like to have a read.

Submission: key dates and points to note

ALL artworks must be submitted online. It means that the quality of your digital image is ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL this year.

REQUIRED READING: On the Mall Galleries website you can find:

• Call for Entries for the Pastel Society Annual Exhibition 2023
• FULL Terms and Conditions for all 'Calls for Entries'
• Call for Entries Frequently Asked Questions
• Website to use for Entries

TIP: If you don't read all the relevant information, do NOT be surprised or irritated if your entry is not selected.

Below is a summary of the stages of entry.

VIDEO: How Willow Charcoal is made

I'm going to start a series of posts about how art materials are made - and I'm starting with how willow charcoal is made.

First a preamble. I'm now halfway through my 12 week (minimum) post ankle fusion surgery recovery period and I'm beginning to feel more myself. (Notwithstanding a horrendous 36 hour episode this week when I discovered my hypersensitive skin was allergic to the liner of my new walker boot! Now thankfully resolved.). 

So I'll be looking to trying to post more - but with an emphasis on shorter posts for the time being.

Given I'm still 100% non weight bearing on my right ankle, this means I'm very much limited to commenting on:

• videos online
• art on television
• books I've already got
• photos I've taken

So here we go with the first in the series.

What is Willow Charcoal?

Artist quality willow charcoal made by Coates Willow Charcoal

Willow Charcoal is a dry art medium. The charcoal is 

• made from burning willow
• NOT compressed 
• there are no other ingredients i.e. no binding agent as you get with compressed charcoal

It's a form of charcoal which has particular characteristic much loved by fine artists. 

Artist Quality Willow Charcoal  (like vine charcoal) is 

• very soft and marks paper easily
• capable of producing a wide range of marks and tones
• not as dark as compressed charcoal
• BUT erases almost completely if you want to use it for an under-drawing

How is Willow Charcoal made?

Below are two YouTube videos about Coates Willow Charcoal - made by Jacksons Art.  Coates are one of the world’s biggest producers of willow charcoal for artists.

The videos are:

• HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: How Willow Charcoal is made (On Location with Coates) This first short video is purely visual - watching the process from start to finish. It's aesthetically pleasing in both visual and audio terms - so kudos to whoever made the video. The camerawork is well thought through, the editing is fantastic and it tells you all you need to know without saying a word! (the words come next - but there are captions is you permit them!)
• INTERESTING: In Conversation with Nicola Coate from Coates Willow Charcoal | Jackson's Art - The second video is an interview with Nicola Coates from the Coates family business which farms willow and produces the charcoal. She explains how the development of artists willow charcoal came about and how they set up production on their farm. She goes on to explain how labour intensive its production is - and all the different stages it goes through.

How Willow Charcoal is made (On Location with Coates) (1 min 49 seconds)

In Conversation with Nicola Coate from Coates Willow Charcoal (13 minutes)

You can also read more about the production process in this Jackson's blog post From Field to Charcoal: Coates Willow Charcoal. (December 2019) written following the production of the first video

This article charts a day in the life at Coates, a truly unique family run business that has manufactured willow for over 200 years and is one of the largest producers of artist charcoal in the world. 

More about Coates Willow Charcoal

Call for Entries: Derwent Art Prize 2022

The 6th Derwent Art Prize is a major INTERNATIONAL art competition for artists working in dry media - and is now open for entries. 

Deadline for entries is Tuesday 4 January 2022 (5pm GMT)

Below you can find out about this major art prize, the prizes on offer in 2022, the selectors and the exhibition and, most importantly how the call for Entries works

The Derwent Art Prize was conceived in 2012 and aims to reward excellence by showcasing the very best artworks created in pencil by artists from around the world.

The Derwent Art Prize is a global art competition with a prize pot of some £12,500. 

The exhibition was conceived in 2012 and has been consistently sponsored by Derwent, the internationally renowned fine art brand since that date. It is

• A Biennial Open Exhibition
• Open to artists from around the world; and 
• Rewards excellence by showcasing the very best 2D & 3D artworks created in pencil or coloured pencil, pastels, graphite and charcoal.

Last time, this exhibition was held in 2020, there were:

• 4,756 entries 
• submitted by 1,884 artists 
• from 72 different countries. 
• The Derwent Art Prize judges selected a shortlist of 70 pieces.

The last Derwent Art Prize exhibition in a gallery - at the Mall Galleries in 2018

The Prizes

CONGRATULATIONS TO DERWENT for maintaining the prize fund in an era when many commercial / organisational sponsors have been turning their faces to the wall and leaving formerly prestigious art prizes to disappear.

I also like the fact that the main prize fund pot is equally split across 

• all entrants and 
• those aged 25 years and under.

Derwent Art Prizewinners with Selectors in 2016

Prizes valued at £12,500 will be awarded to entries selected for the exhibition at the Private View at the Exhibition at the Gallery@OXO, London.

A total prize fund of £12,500 will be awarded. Prizes are as follows:

• Derwent Art Prize (£6,000)
• First Prize £4,000 plus a year’s supply of Derwent products**
• Second Prize £2,000
• Young Artist Prize - for artists under 25 years (£6,000)
• Young Artist First Prize (For artists under 25 years) £4,000 *
• Young Artist Second Prize (For artists under 25 years) £2,000
• People’s Choice Award £500

All the First and Second prize winners will also receive a special box of Derwent Lightfast Pencils which have a core which is resistant to prolonged colour change- meaning artwork hung in archival/museum conditions will not fade for up to 100 years.

The Selectors

This year’s entries will be judged by a panel of selectors comprising an artist, a critic and a curator. a fourth Judge is to be announced.

• Katy Hessel - a London-based art historian, curator, podcaster, and founder of the influential Instagram, @thegreatwomenartists.

Writing and speaking about art history in an accessible and fun manner, my goal is to readdress the gender imbalance in the art world by reinserting women back into the canon of art history.

• Paul Hobson - Director of Modern Art Oxford - 

he has worked for more than twenty years in the art world in senior roles for the Contemporary Art Society, The Showroom, the Serpentine Gallery, and Royal Academy of Arts in London. He has been Director of Modern Art Oxford since 2013.

• Charmaine Watkiss - Artist - pencil and paper are her main materials of choice

Her work is concerned with what she calls ‘memory stories’. She creates these stories primarily through research connected to the African Caribbean diaspora, and then maps the stories onto life sized figures. 

The Exhibition

From the open submission applications the panel will select approximately 80 works for exhibition.

At the bottom of the page you can find my previous reviews of this art competition, the prizewinners and the exhibitions - and see the diverse range of artwork which has been selected in the last eight years. 

The exhibition will be held at Gallery@OXO in central London will be from 24 February – 6 March 2022.

This is situated on the Riverside Walkway at the heart of one of the richest cultural areas of London, between the London Eye, The Hayward Gallery and Tate Modern.

How to enter the Derwent Art Prize

Who can enter

Entries are invited from international artists

What can you enter

Artists may only enter once, with a maximum of 6 images.