Viewing the Summer Exhibition normally starts once you enter the magnificent doors into the first room, the Central Hall. Not so this year; in his desire to involve the actual building itself and not just the walls, curator Michael Craig-Martin decided to include the stairs. Hence those wide wooden stairs, so familiar to all RA devotees as the first foray into every exhibition, have been painted in vibrant stripes by Jim Lambie. It felt almost sacrilegious to walk on them to reach the main show.
Colour was also on Craig-Martin’s mind when he curated this year’s Summer Exhibition. But not just on the canvases and sculptures - a few of the rooms have been drenched in a rich colour and the walls of the main gallery have been painted a vibrant pink. But won’t that detract from the colours of the actual artworks? - I hear you ask, but strangely it doesn’t, it somehow works with many of the canvases and the colours sing out more. Mississippi River Blues, a white ink and black wash painting by Richard Long, looks incredibly striking as the anchor point of Room ll and Craig-Martin’s own massive painting of a watch on turquoise positively leaps off the wall.
Thankfully, not every room is violent pink though - the Central Hall is turquoise and most rooms are conventionally white which is more restful on the eye. I noticed this year how wonderfully bright the Royal Academy galleries are, light floods in from ceiling windows and the hanging is far from over-crowded. In fact, there are some vast empty spaces which may be slightly irksome for those artists who were short-listed but didn’t make the final ‘hang’.
We were reminded at the start of the curator’s tour that the whole point of the Summer Exhibition is to raise money to fund the RA schools that are hidden in the depths below the main galleries, and this is the only graduate art school in England that does not charge fees. Now in its 247th year, the Summer Exhibition is the longest standing exhibition in the world and every year is wonderfully different.
This year’s hanging committee includes Royal Academicians: Norman Ackroyd, Olwyn Bowey, Gus Cummins, Jock McFayden - all familiar names whose own works are included and - what I love about this show - just casually mixed in with work by unknown artists and yet all hanging so together like old friends.
This year’s show deliberately includes artists of an ‘older’ generation, many of whom were acclaimed in their day but have slightly slipped under the radar. Good news for we the spectators, for these artists were creating in the hey day of abstract painting, experimenting with different styles and forms, and producing some wonderful work.
The print room is particularly exciting this year - and Norman Ackroyd, who has overseen the room said he enjoyed the ‘astonishing level of work submitted, and the fascinating range of print methods.’ Printmakers are undoubtably on a roll right now, employing all sort of materials to create their images and enjoying mixing traditional techniques with new.
Most rooms have what Craig-martin calls an ‘anchor point’. In Room Vlll a huge, bluey painting of two ladies by the late Bill Bowyer dominates, in the friendliest of ways, the whole vast space. In Room lV, a mirrored work by Paul Hosking is deliciously opulent, take time to go right up to it and study the amazing refections of the room behind you. And be prepared for the joy of Grayson Perry’s fabulous, massive tapestry, ‘Julie and Rob’ in Room l - it will lift your heart with its sheer colour and Perry’s amazing devotion to his craft.
Each time I visit the Summer Exhibition, I feel incredibly excited by the vast range of work. I seek out my own favourites - Ken Howard, Gus Cummings, Quentin Blake, Anita Klein, and I look for those less well known for their art - Una Stubbs does some wonderful watercolours. And every year I discover someone new who I hope will be there again the following year, such as Simon Wright or Mike Jones.
Apparently the average visitor to the Summer Exhibition spends 3 hours there - I warn you, that is not enough. Take your time, or simply go again another day - a different mood, different shoes - each time will offer a different, and very worthwhile, experience.
The RA Summer Exhibition 2015 runs from June 8 - August 16. www.royalacademy.org.uk
