The Royal Glasgow Institute of Fine Arts

The annual Royal Glasgow Institute of Fine Arts exhibition is now in its 152nd year.  Open to all, it is a fixture in most artists' calenders.  Many enter and many wait apprehensively to see whether their prized works will be accepted into this grand tradition.

 

Housed this year in the beautiful McLellan Galleries for the first time in seven years, the organisers hope to welcome thousands of visitors to the biggest contemporary art exhibition in Scotland.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This year, the usual entry fee has been waived, although I would have been more than happy to have paid.

 

As stated in the RGI website: 'To mark this landmark event for the RGI, and for Scotland, the usual exhibition visitor admission fee has been dropped - making the exhibition free for all to enjoy.  By reopening the galleries and staging an exhibition of exceptional quality and variety, the RGI hopes to ignite public and political passion for the McLellan Galleries and see this incredible cultural asset permanently reinstated as major venue for arts in Scotland.'

 

They certainly succeeded with the exceptional quality and variety of works. I was incredibly impressed and I thought the exhibition far exceeded previous years when housed in the Mitchell Library. 

 

Always on the lookout for exciting artists, I found myself in awe of many of the works by familiar artists, but I was also delighted to be scribbling down the names of several artists who I wasn't familiar with. 

 

The hanging of this exhibition was exquisite.  A huge task had been undertaken, and executed brilliantly.   But where were the red dots?  There were many, but the amount of works I saw that would have been snapped up with the right buyers in front of them.  Moving from room to room, it was a treasure trove of talent in there and I do hope enough people made it through the doors.

 

There is still this weekend, with the exhibition running until Sunday.  Well worth a visit.  I would have another look if I could.  I think this year's exhibition is an incredible showcase to the talent we have in Scotland, and what a fitting venue.

 

I so hope that 'public and political passion for the McClellan Galleries' has been ignited.  It certainly worked for me, and I think Glasgow deserves to see the 153rd exhibition in the McLellan Galleries next year.

 

 

Thanks for reading!

 

 

Natalie