From the Artist: Insights from the ROI Annual Exhibition 2024
/ Royal Institute of Oil Painters
The Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition has always been dedicated to promoting works of the highest standard in oil paint, both from within the UK and around the world.
Artist Fiona Cotton from Australia entered the ROI Open Call for the first time this year and her work was selected for the 2024 show. So follows an exciting two weeks in London and a first-hand account of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition 2024 from an international exhibitor.
From Fiona Cotton
It was a huge delight to discover that one of my still life paintings was selected to hang in the 2024 annual exhibition of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters alongside those of the ROI members.
The selection of French Pot and Pomegranates was especially gratifying as this was the first time I had entered.
As I made arrangements to send the painting to the Mall Galleries in London, I couldn't help feeling envious of this painting travelling from Australia to such an excellent location in my country of origin. I wished I could shrink inside the parcel and go for the ride.
The painting demonstrations I was able to catch were excellent (I’m running out of positive adjectives here!). It was fascinating to watch some wonderful ROI members at work - Rob Pointon, Ruth Fitton and Roger Dellar - seeing what they have on their palettes, how they mix their paints, what medium they use, which brushes they prefer and so on.
The complex colour/tonal strings on Rob Pointon’s three palettes were particularly memorable! Fantastic preparation!
I visited the gallery pretty much every day and loved being able to study closely many of the paintings in the exhibition such as Linda Alexander's serene still lifes, glorious landscapes by David Curtis, Tushar Sabale's wet street scene, Lotta Teale's luscious strawberries, Susan Pollard Gillespie's quietly contemplative Soup or Cereal?, and the masterful portrait I Solemnly Swear I am up to no Good! by Laura Arenson. There were so many paintings of wonderful quality which can still be seen on the Mall Galleries website. It was truly an honour to hang in this exhibition.
The Paint Live event went ahead with painters making for their chosen spots for the day. I am not generally a plein-air painter but decided to have a go anyway. Given my shyness painting plein-air, I chose to paint a smaller entry to the Royal Horse Guard's Hotel in a quieter street, with its two red planter boxes, and had been working for quite a bit when a large tourist bus parked right between me and my view!
By this time, my fingers had become so numb I could hardly hold my brushes - probably because they were not used to the cold after the 34 degree summer heat I had just left behind. So I abandoned my effort hoping to continue in the studio.
On the night of the after-hours portrait painting, I had to go to Heathrow to catch my flight home, but I still went to watch the large number of painters and the excellent models dressed for the occasion. I wished so much I could have joined in - but getting the paints organised when the bag was all packed was just a step too far. But the wine, mince pies and company were a delightful send off! I am now back home in the studio, invigorated by the whole experience and eager to try out new ideas and techniques.
To receive such a warm welcome by so many and to have the opportunity to see their paintings in the exhibition was both stimulating and encouraging. While I can't mention everyone, my thanks go especially to President Adebanji Alade and Vice-President Haidee-Jo Summers for making me feel so welcome.
Fiona Cotton
Open Calls
Mall Galleries is home to the Federation of British Artists, a visual arts charity supporting artists since 1961.
We have a huge variety of opportunities open to artists from around the world running throughout the year.