Rws Contemporary Watercolour Contest 2012 - Review

Yesterday, later on dropping my artwork off amongst the Society of Botanical Artists, I went to come across the exhibition for the RWS Contemporary Watercolour Competition 2012 held at the Bankside Gallery.

This exhibition, every bit I indicated inward my before post, RWS Contemporary Watercolour Competition 2012 - Selected artists & artwork, this exhibition is 100% open.  There are no plant past times members of the RWS.

General impressions of the exhibition

RWS Contemporary Watercolour Competition - the characteristic wall

The commencement thing that needs maxim is that there is a lot of first-class artwork inward this exhibition in addition to I really much recommend it every bit an exhibition for lovers of watercolou.  Much of it is "proper watercolour" (and those who've read my previous comments on this theme volition know I hateful traditional watercolour in addition to goauche rather than acrylic).  That said I saw a stunning epitome inward acrylic which really much took my fancy! The paintings are also much to a greater extent than a production of freehand epitome in addition to hand-eye co-ordination rather than produced amongst the assistance of technical aids.  If you're thinking of entering adjacent twelvemonth I propose yous pay a visit before the exhibition finishes on 14th March.

That said, I also accept to banknote that I came across what I considered to last around weak examples of watercolour fine art which I flora rather surprising.  I'm non going to lift names or otherwise characterise them - although if you're a watercolour creative somebody whose move I charge per unit of measurement highly yous may observe me dropping yous a line of piece of employment to propose yous larn into adjacent year! ;)

I also noticed that I was seeing to a greater extent than than 1 epitome for the mo or 3rd fourth dimension inward the terminal 12 months.  Good though they may be, I retrieve a contest of this form actually should accept a status that the entries accept non been previously exhibited inward London.  Not to the lowest degree because those paintings I saw are also produced past times artists whose move I charge per unit of measurement in addition to I know they accept to a greater extent than expert paintings inward their portfolios!  Maybe a dot for the RWS to ponder on?

RWS Open 2012 - South Wall

RWS Open 2012 - The Alcove Wall

In full general damage - in addition to for the practise goodness of those thinking of entering adjacent year - this is what I flora inward damage of dependent area matter, media, agency in addition to presentation

Winner of St Cuthbert’s Mill Prize
(top) Stu by Mark Haddon

• styles lean towards the impressionistic in addition to figurative (ie freehand rather than traced) in addition to at that topographic point is relatively fiddling hyper/photographic realism
• mainly watercolour in addition to gouache, express purpose of inks in addition to acrylic
• there's an awful lot of landscapes of every size in addition to style
• there's to a greater extent than botanical move in addition to yet lives involving flowers, fruit in addition to vegetables than I've seen before.  I retrieve the botanical artists accept only begun to realise they tin also apply to give-up the ghost members of the RWS!
• the portraits in addition to paintings of figures varied enormously - in addition to 2 won prizes.  There were really few take away portraits.  There were around really stylised treatments of people.  Interestingly these carried to a greater extent than conviction than those where it was really evident the figure had been painted from a photo.  I was somewhat surprised at that topographic point weren't to a greater extent than out in addition to out portrait painters submitting move inward watercolour
• there's non a lot of abstract move although at that topographic point are around 'statement' paintings
• framing is neutral, lite wood, white or black.  Study my photos to come across what I mean.  Most but non all are matted.  Relatively few were floated.
• the paintings amongst acquit on tended to last either bigger than average (eg whole canvas of watercolour paper) or smaller than average in addition to technically skilled.

Award winners

These are the respect winners

Top left - Winner of the David Gluck Memorial Award
After the Storm 2 by Maki Kiryu

• Royal Watercolour Society Award (£500 cash prize) - Matchbox Seascapes by David Cass
• David Glück Memorial Award (£1000 cash prize) - After the Storm 2 by Maki Kiryu
• St Cuthbert’s Mill (£300 worth of paper) - Stu past times Mark Haddon
• Daler Rowney Prize (Daler Rowney Artist Watercolour Set) - Jess Puts upward the Boards by Malcolm Wilkinson - come across below
• Winsor & Newton Prizes
• 1st Prize (£250 RRP worth of Winsor & Newton Art Materials) - Bob Ballard
• Runner upward (Artists' Watercolour Box)  Dhaka past times Robin Storey
• The Artist Prize (An article inward a hereafter final result of The Artist magazine) - Bathers, Sandycove, County Dublin past times John Short

Winner of The Artist Prize (top centre)
Bathers, Sandycove, County Dublin past times John Short

People whose move I liked

Winner of the Daler Rowney Prize
Jess puts upward the boards (sold) past times Malcolm Wilkinson
acrylic

I idea Jess puts upward the Boards past times Malcolm Wilkinson was absolutely delightful - in addition to hugely accomplished inward a technical feel inward all sorts of ways.  I actually similar paintings of people 'doing things' in addition to this was likely the best epitome of a somebody inward the whole show.  It also managed to non expect similar it had been painted from a photograph which was likely helped enormously past times his technique of optical mark-making.  I've included a department of of the epitome below to demonstrate how it is painted using tiny marks - non dissimilar those used past times painter using Egg Tempera.  This is non a large epitome - from retentiveness non bigger than a canvas of A4.

Extract from Jess puts upward the boards (sold) past times Malcolm Wilkinson

Two amount canvas paintings of vegetable gardens inward the English linguistic communication countryside by Philip Rundall kept drawing my eyes.  They're good designed amongst a color palette that's really pleasing fifty-fifty if non solely natural - but thence I'm really fond of light-green blues.  They seemed to me to play on the notion that "every light-green goes amongst every other green".  They also reminded me a flake of June Berry RWS - but thence June paints vegetable gardens inward the country!

The White Van past times Philip Rundall
watercolour

Tessa Shedley Jordan has produced an outstanding trio of yet life arrangements of fruit, vegetables in addition to leaves - hither are 2 of them (below).  All her move is a amount canvas of watercolour newspaper in addition to it's really impressive.

In a French Kitchen in addition to From the Wild Wood past times Tessa Shedley Jordan
watercolour

I was greatly amused past times Christopher Dunn's modest epitome titled It's raining, It's pouring.  One would last difficult set to retrieve of a less probable dependent area for a epitome in addition to yet it plant actually good - if yous similar amusing paintings.

It's raining, it's pouring past times Christopher Dunn
watercolour in addition to gouache

The adjacent exhibition is the Spring Exhibition of Members Work - it'll last interesting to come across which I prefer!


Note:  Joy of joys - Blackfriars subway scheme station is straightaway opened upward 1 time again in addition to the Thames Path has been reinstated which makes getting to the Bankside Gallery a lot easier.


However The Thames Path is unopen on 10-11 March due to the continued tumble out the novel entrance to Blackfriars Station which is a straightaway hop, skip in addition to a boundary from the front end door to the Bankside Gallery

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