Royal Society of Portrait Painters

The Royal Society of Portrait Painters (RP) is a British association of portrait painters and is a member of the Federation of British Artists (FBA). The Society is based in the Mall Galleries in London , which is also where the other members of the Federation of British Artists are located.

history

The Society was founded as the Society of Portrait Painters in 1891 by 24 artists, including the painter John Collier , who were frustrated with the Royal Academy of Arts , which was elitist about membership and favored its own artists. To ensure that society would play an important role in the art world, the most important portraitists of the time - George Frederick Watts , James McNeill Whistler, and John Everett Millais - were elected as members. Their works could then also be seen at the first exhibition in 1891.

The annual exhibitions were held in various locations - even in the rooms of the Royal Academy during World War I - and attracted the entire high society of the time. Well-known portrait painters such as Hubert von Herkomer , William Nicholson , Augustus John and Laura Knight were repeatedly appointed to exhibitions. James Jebusa Shannon , the Society's third President, was able to announce at a dinner on the occasion of the Coronation Exhibition on the 20th anniversary in 1911 that King George V had awarded the Society the Royal Charter , so that from now on it is the Royal Society of Portrait Painters may call.

Even if the portrait as an art form has occasionally been underestimated in recent times, the Society could be sure of the attention of the public. In 1984, Queen Elizabeth II even took over the patronage of the society. In the late 1980s, the Royal Society of Portrait Painters was converted into a registered trading company and charity . The Society celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1991 with a historical exhibition of the works of its members.

Famous artist

Web links

Official website