The Summer Exhibition is an open art exhibition held annually by the Royal Academy in Burlington House, Piccadilly in central London, England, during June, July, and August. The exhibition includes paintings, prints, drawings, sculpture, architectural designs and models, and is described by the Royal Academy as the world's largest open-submission exhibition. It is also "the longest continuously staged exhibition of contemporary art in the world".

When the Royal Academy was founded in 1768, one of its key objectives was to establish an annual exhibition, open to all artists of merit, which could be visited by the public. The first Summer Exhibition took place in 1769; it has been held every year since without exception.

History

In 1768, a group of artists visited King George III and sought his permission to establish a society for Arts and Design. They proposed the idea of an annual exhibition and a school design. King George III approved of the idea, and the first exhibition, in 1769, included 136 works. The name Summer Exhibition dates from 1870.

Selection process For the 2006 exhibition, the academy received a statue and a plinth from David Hensel. By mistake, the two parts were judged independently, resulting in the statue being rejected and the plinth put on display. Some artists apply repeatedly before being selected: in 2024 Alison Aye's accepted piece Shifting to the Moon was her 31st submission.

Exhibition

The RA Summer Exhibition usually opens to the public in early June, preceded by a series of private viewings. The main event is called "Varnishing Day", the day that, according to popular legend, artists would come to add a final coat of varnish to their paintings (compare: vernissage). Traditionally, artists walk in procession from Burlington House to St James's Church, Piccadilly, where a service is held.

Some years have particular themes. The 2005 exhibition theme was "Printmaking and the multiple". In 2006, the theme was "From Life." In 2008, the theme was "Man Made". The theme for 2010 was "Raw".

Coordinators 2005 Stephen Farthing and Christopher Orr 2010 Stephen Chambers 2011 Christopher Le Brun 2012 Tess Jaray 2013 Eva Jiřičná and Norman Ackroyd 2014 Hughie O'Donoghue 2015 Michael Craig-Martin 2016 Yinka Shonibare 2017 Eileen Cooper 2018 Grayson Perry 2019 Jock McFadyen 2020 Jane and Louise Wilson 2021 Yinka Shonibare 2022 Alison Wilding 2023 David Remfry 2024 Ann Christopher 2025 Farshid Moussavi

Awards Over £70,000 prize money, including the £25,000 Charles Wollaston Award, is awarded each year at the Summer Exhibition. In addition, a £10,000 architectural prize is awarded.R. Waite, "Cash prizes return for Royal Academy Summer Exhibition" , architectsjournal.co.uk, 22 February 2015.

Winners of Charles Wollaston Award +YearArtistArtworkMediumExhibitedViewRef.1978Peter GreenhamLady Bonham CarterOil on canvasGallery ITate1979Roger de GreyMarennesOil on canvasGallery III1980Anthony Gross19811982Robert Buhler19831984198519861987John Bellany1988198919901991Neil Jeffries1992Sandra BlowWhisperingsAcrylicGallery III19931994Robert MedleyPreparation for the ExecutionOil on canvasGallery IIRoyal Academy1995Barry FlanaganThe CricketerBronzeCourtyardJesus College, Cambridge1996Jeffery Camp1997R. B. KitajSandra ThreeMixed media — view installation Gallery IICentrepiece at Astrup Fearnley Museet1998John HoylandTree Music 6.3.98Acrylic on cottonGallery VIPrivate Collection1999David HockneyA Bigger Grand CanyonOil on sixty canvasesLecture RoomNational Gallery of Australia2000Gerard HemsworthBetween Heaven and Hell 1998Acrylic on canvasGallery IV2001Marc QuinnCatherine LongMarbleLarge Weston Room2002Alan CharltonVertical Painting in 20Acrylic on canvasGallery IV2003Jake and Dinos ChapmanMarriage of Reason and Squalor IIPainted BronzeGallery I"Chapman brothers win £25,000 prize" , The Guardian, 27 June 2003.200420052006Chantal JoffeBlond Girl - Black DressOil on boardGallery III2007Gavin TurkDumb CandleWoodGallery I2008Jeff KoonsCracked Egg (Blue) 1994-2006High chromium stainless steel with transparent colour coatingCentral Hall2009Richard Wilson2010Yinka ShonibareCrash WillyMannequin, Dutch wax printed cotton textile, leather, fibreglass and metalWohl Central Hall2011Alison WildingTake a Deep Breath…Painted foam, copper and fibreglass resinLecture Room"Alison Wilding wins the Charles Wollaston Award 2011" , cornerhousepublications.org, 20 June 2011.2012Anselm KieferSamsonOil, acrylic, steel, pastel and charcoalLarge Weston Room2013El AnatsuiTSIATSIA – searching for connectionAluminium (bottle tops, printing plates, roofing sheets) and copper wireCourtyard (facade of the RA) "El Anatsui wins the prestigious Charles Wollaston Award for his work at the Royal Academy of Arts, 245th Summer Exhibition" , octobergallery.co.uk.2014Wolfgang TillmansGreifbar 1Inkjet printGallery IX"Summer Exhibition 2014, Royal Academy of Arts" , The Huffington Post, 24 June 2014.2015Rose WylieHerr Rehlinger In White ArmourOil on canvasGallery III2016David NashBig BlackCharred redwoodGallery IV2017Isaac JulienWestern Union: Small BoatsFive screen projectionGallery X2018Mike NelsonUntitled (Public sculpture for a redundant space)Sleeping bag, concrete and rubbleThe Annenberg Courtyard & StaircaseRoyal Academy2019Joe TilsonFinestra VeneziaThirty-six Murano glass works for the Grande Albergo Ausonia and HungariaGallery II20202021Naomi GakungaWetereire – WaitingStainless steel wire, sheet metal and paperLecture Room2022Uta KögelsbergerCullVideoSmall Weston Room2023Kara WalkerThe Omicron VariationsInk on paperGallery III2024Tracey EminDid it Ever Get Any BetterAcrylic on canvasGallery III2025Sikelela OwenKNITTINGOilGallery VIII

Reception The exhibition has received both admiration and criticism. Jonathan Jones described it in 2019 as the "bloated corpse of a tradition ... [with] a tired, inward looking, end-of-the-road quality".

An exhibition about the history of the Summer Exhibition, The Great Spectacle, was held in 2018.

References

Further reading (see index) The Great Spectacle: 250 Years of the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition (2018), by Mark Hallett and Sarah Victoria Turner Posters: A Century of Summer Exhibitions at the Royal Academy (2015), by Mark Pomeroy

External links Summer Exhibition website The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition: A Chronicle, 1769–2018 About the Researching the Summer Exhibition project (Paul Mellon Centre) RESEARCHING THE SUMMER EXHIBITION (The Royal Academy) RA Summer Exhibition: The promotional power of the poster (BBC) (Search facility by artist)