The quality of most of the 395 artworks in the 80th Annual Exhibition of the Royal Society of Marine Artists is very high.
The show includes some absolutely amazing artworks which just made my
jaw drop – such as the Frisky Dolphins below which I had to keep walking round and round!
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| Frisky Dolphins by Derek Pearce Bronze, 49 x 150 x 75cm the most expensive artwork I’ve seen for some time! |
You can view all the artwork online – however there is nothing quite like seeing it
on the wall
If you can’t get to London (and I know many have issues re. time and/or expense), the next best thing is to
see it on the wall in my photographs of the entire exhibition which I’ve been
posting on Facebook ever since my visit last week. You can see them here
- RSMA Annual Exhibition 2025 – East Gallery
RSMA Annual Exhibition 2025 – North Gallery - RMSA Annual Exhibition 2025 – West Gallery
- Demonstrations by Roger Dellar, Andrew Hird and and Srirangam Mohankumar
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| A view which highlights some of the 3D artwork in the East Gallery |
My post last week RSMA Annual Exhibition 2025 – Award winners and Catalogue references the catalogue and awardwinners.
Review of the RSMA 80th Annual Exhibition
I always sit and write my comments in the catalogue after doing my first tour round the exhibition – and then add in more comments later after I’ve been around again.
However this time I nearly did not get a catalogue for free. Long gone are the days when the people behind the desk at the Mall Galleries are permanent staff who are the same on every visit who greet me because we’ve known each other for ages. People who know that I both review the exhibition and “drum up” both visitors to the exhibition and entrants for the call for entries in the following year.
Many of the artists who exhibit in exhibitions I review do so because they have heard about those exhibitions from me – and they tell me! I don’t often boast but I have a very long and robust track record of “growing competitive exhibitions” over the last 20 years of blogging MAM. As well as the FBA Shows at the Mall Galleries, these range from the BP Portrait Award – where the entrants grew exponentially and internationally following my comprehensive coverage of it to the RHS Botanical Art Show – which has moved out of the Horticultural Halls and now exhibits at the Saatchi Gallery for several weeks each summer.
Those running the FBA Exhibitions know that my blog often provides the only decent length review they get. I have had thanks from many Presidents over the year online and in person for the profile I give to the societies. I don’t need thanks – I would do it anyway. But it’s always nice to be recognised for a constructive contribution – even if it is sometimes is critical of some aspect of a society/exhibition/arrangements. At the end you can find links to past reviews.
But apparently the people at the desk think I need to pay for a catalogue. Yes, I was miffed. Hence the delay in this review because I knew I was going to say something and a little distance seemed judicious….
ANYWAY…. back to the exhibition and the comments in my catalogue
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| The end wall in the West Gallery |
I thought it a very well hung exhibition for the most part. It was helped of course by having 57 fewer artworks in the show compared to last year.
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| Mezzanine wall of smaller artworks |
However, the main thing I noticed this year is that this an exhibition which is much more “marine” and much less about “boats.” So lots of:
- seascapes
- waves and wave formations – by the men and not just the women!
- nature and wildlife – animals, fish and plants associated with the sea
