In January I decided I was going to apply to the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition.
As a child it was one of the first galleries I visited. My Great Aunt, who was a painter and potter, took me and my Mum and sister on an 'educational trip' to see some ‘proper art’ and hopefully inspire us. Consequently in my mind the Royal Academy Gallery is a massively revered institution - certainly not for the likes of me!
This belief had been blocking me from moving forward creatively so I reminded myself that if you don't try you can't succeed. I have more than 30 years experience of working in clay, so if I can’t apply now, when can I?! I love a bit of a challenge and also enjoy working to somebody else's brief.
This year the celebrated painter David Remfry is the exhibition coordinator. He has chosen the theme ‘Only Connect’ which is a quote from EM Forster’s novel Howard’s End. I studied this book at school and I remember feeling exhausted by some of the characters. In Howard’s End the phrase ‘Only Connect’ means a connection between the spiritural and quotidian. David Remfry uses it to mean a connection between oneself and everything else.
Next Friday, 24th March, I will be celebrating having taken part in this process - Join me for a glass of fizz from 4pm - 7.30pm.
Come and see the piece that I created for the Royal Academy Exhibition and some other new pieces that have yet to be shown publicly.
I will also be announcing whether I got through to the next round of judging....