How to enter the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours 213th Exhibition 2025
How to submit
SUBMISSIONS OPEN NOW
ALL work must be submitted online at: https://www.mallgalleries.org.uk/open-calls/royal-institute-painters-water-colours
Important Dates
Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours (RI) 213th Exhibition 2025
Submissions open: Friday 25 October 2024, 12 noon
Submissions close: Tuesday 28 January 2025, 12 noon
Selection notification: Friday 7 February, 12 noon
Receiving Day: Saturday 15 March, 10am to 5pm
Exhibition open: Wednesday 26 March, 10am to 5pm daily
Exhibition closes: Saturday 5 April, 5pm
Collection of unsold work: Thursday 10 April, 10am to 5pm
Conditions
Any artist over 18 may submit, in the UK, EU and outside the EU.
Acceptable media: Watercolour or water-soluble mediums, including watercolour, acrylic, ink or gouache (with the exception of water-soluble oils) painted on any support. Please specify the type of support (for example paper, board, wood, parchment etc) as well as the medium.
Submission fee: £20 per work payable at the time of submitting (£14 per work for artists aged 35 or under), which includes free admission to the exhibition
Maximum of six works submitted.
Maximum of four works selected.
Paintings must be well presented, glazed with picture glass (except in special circumstances as below, or by prior arrangement with the RI) and suitably framed (no metal or clip frames are permitted). Glazing in perspex or similar transparent acrylic materials may be accepted, but only on works arriving from abroad or large works in frames exceeding 100cm on the longest side. All works submitted should be framed unless there is a genuine aesthetic reason for the work to remain unframed. If entering unframed work. please indicate it in the artwork description on submission. Artists entering unframed work do so at their own risk. Works should not be larger than 2.4m high and 1.5m wide including the frame. The Selection Committee has the right to withdraw paintings that are over this limit. Works must have been completed in the last two years and should not have been previously shown in London.
All works must be for sale. Minimum price: £350.
Artists who are not resident in the UK but are resident in the EU are welcome to submit work. If your work is sold at the exhibition you have a responsibility to register and account for UK VAT with H.M. Revenue & Customs. Artists submitting work from outside the UK and EU must be registered BEFORE they submit online. Artists without a UK residence (known as ‘NETPs’ – non-established taxable persons) can find further details on ‘NETP’ status and how to register for VAT at www.hmrc.gov.uk, (HM Revenue & Customs Reference: Notice 700/1, Mar 2014) under the heading ‘Should I be registered for VAT?’ Please note: the registration process can take up to 4 weeks. Please address any questions you may have to the VAT Helpline on tel. no. 0845 010 9000 or, if your call is from outside the UK, +44 2920501 261.
Artists sending work from abroad should use a picture carrier. Many artists use Picture Post as they offer a packing and delivery service for our exhibitions (we do not accept any liability for their services). Picture Post – Tel: 07833 450788 / Email: info@picturepostcompany.co.uk
For full terms and conditions please visit www.mallgalleries.org.
Prizes & Awards
There are many prizes and awards available to win, including:
The Winsor & Newton Award: £3000 cash, awarded to an individual member or non-member
The Winsor & Newton Product Prize: £1000 RRP of Winsor & Newton art materials of choice, awarded to an individual member or non-member
The RI Young Artist Award: £1,000 awarded to an artist between 18 and 25 years old
The President’s Choice Award: An award of £750 for the most deserving work in the exhibition, donated by a member of the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours (RI) and judged by the President of the RI, Rosa Sepple
The Cass Art Prize: A prize of £200 of art supplies from Cass Art, awarded to a work demonstrating the most innovative use of colour
The John Purcell Paper Prize: Paper to the value of £100 awarded to a work chosen by John Purcell
The Debra Manifold Memorial Award: Presented by the Linda Blackstone Gallery, an award for the most innovative work in the exhibition
The Escoda Barcelona Award: A set of Escoda’s finest brushes for an outstanding landscape painting
The Schmincke Prize: A Horadam Aquarell Artists’ Watercolour set awarded to an outstanding exhibitor
Anthony J Lester Art Critic Award: An outstanding work chosen by the art critic and broadcaster Anthony J Lester
The Frank Herring Easel Award: An easel presented for an outstanding work in the exhibition by Frank Herring & Sons
The Dry Red Press Award: The winning work will be published as a greeting card in the Dry Red Press ‘Prize Winners’ range, with royalties from the sale of the cards going to the artist.
Megan Fitzoliver Brush Award: For a work that most inspires a connection with the natural world.
The James Fletcher-Watson RI Award: £500 for the best use of watercolour in the exhibition
The Chaoshan Watercolour Award: £250 awarded by Chinese artist, Professor Li Xiaocheng, for the best classically inspired watercolour
The Baohong Artists’ Watercolour Paper Prizes: Two prizes of £250 each, awarded to a member and non-member for excellence
The Michael Harding Award: A varied selection of Michael Harding watercolour sets