Minutes until the cards go live!!

Who’s excited?  I know I am.

Just a reminder for those who haven’t noticed SALE DAY IS SATURDAY AT 12 NOON.

Don’t be turning up expecting the sale to start at 8am as in previous years.  

The college have asked people not to queue before 8am so we should respect that.

Eyes down, have fun spotting your favourite cards and I will see you at the viewing tomorrow or the sale on Saturday. 

Definitely over 2000 cards then

The college most recent article on the sale clearly says that over 2000 cards will feature in this year’s sale - a significantly increased number on last year.

Here’s the full text 

From 30 November until 3 December 2018 over 2,000 postcard-sized original artworks will be on display at the College’s Kensington campus. The annual fundraising exhibition offers the unique opportunity to own original artworks by some of today’s greatest artists and designers with each small-scale masterpiece available for a minimum donation of £60. The only catch, or perhaps what makes Stewarts RCA Secret so appealing, is that all postcards are displayed anonymously.

In the past contributors to the exhibition have included renowned alumni and friends of the College including Christopher Bailey, David Bailey, Sir James Dyson, Tracey Emin, Norman Foster, Thomas Heatherwick, Anish Kapoor, Mike Leigh, Steve McQueen, Grayson Perry, Zandra Rhodes, Sir Paul Smith and Yinka Shonibare. Current students and recent alumni are also invited to contribute to the exhibition, offering the chance to view and own works by the art and design stars of the future.

A huge range of approaches, subjects and mediums feature in the exhibition, demonstrating the creativity, ingenuity and innovation of RCA students, staff, graduates and friends. From photography and collage, to drawing, painting, and even sculpture and embroidery – the works on display offer something for all tastes, with the only requirement being that all artworks have to be postcard sized. Confirmed contributors this year include Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park; contemporary artist Bob and Roberta Smith; and painter and sculptor Maggi Hambling.

Stewarts RCA Secret was established in 1994 and is London’s original postcard exhibition. All proceeds from the annual event go towards theRCA Fund. This vital support enables the College to offer bursaries to students who would not otherwise be able to attend the RCA and benefit from its world-leading education. Through the support of the public, Stewarts RCA Secret enables the College to provide transformational experiences to talented individuals regardless of their background or financial circumstances and foster the next generation of RCA graduates at a formative time in their careers.

Images of all postcards in the exhibition will be released online from 9am on Thursday 29 November, 24 hours before the exhibition opens to the public. Stewarts RCA Secret will then be open for viewing from Friday 30 November at 12pm. Supporters will have the opportunity to purchase their postcards from Saturday 1 December to Monday 3 December.

In order to purchase a postcard, supporters must register on the RCA Secret website to obtain a buyer’s ID. Buyers will be able to purchase their chosen postcards, initially capped at four per buyer, throughout the exhibition from 1 to 3 December. On the last day of the exhibition, everyone will be welcome to come back and choose unlimited postcards. 

Purchased postcards can be collected in person on the collection day, Thursday 6 December, or posted once the exhibition has closed.

---

Stewarts RCA Secret 2018
Royal College of Art, Kensington Gore, London SW7 2EU
Exhibition & postcard selection: Saturday 1 December 12–6pm; Sunday 2 and Monday 3 December 10am–6pm
Collection day: Thursday 6 December from 4–8pm
Viewing day: Friday 30 November from 12–7pm 

Stewarts LLP is proud to sponsor the RCA Secret exhibition. Stewarts is one of the UK's leading litigation law firms. They have built a strong reputation for innovative and ground breaking dispute practice

Who is Candra Cassini part 2?

We’ve written about this topic before here

In the midst of the chaos that was rca secret 2017 one thing may have passed people by - Candra Cassini did no less that 8, yes 8 cards.  If you don’t believe us see here.

Now we know that for most contributing artists last year they were only sent 2 cards.  Some appear to have done 4, either because they were well known contributors or presumably because they were sent 2 packs in error and decided to generously donate 4 cards.  But no one else did anywhere close to 8.

Indeed in the history of rca secret it has been very rare indeed for an artist to contribute more than 6 cards.  6 cards used to be the maximum sent to any artist - Gehard Richter did 6 in 2009 for example.  There are plenty of other examples.  

There is one example we can recall  of an artist doing more than 6 and that was Richard Wentworth a few years ago, around 2010 from memory.  Of course Wentworth was head of sculpture at the college at the time so that is perhaps not so surprising.  His cards, photographs of tomatoes in odd places, were a delight that year.  

Readers may be able to remember other examples but there certainly aren’t that many.  

The existence of 8 cards last year leads us to suspect even more than Cassini is a “nom de plume” for someone at or close to the college.  It’s noteworthy this year that the college are doing their Hidden RCA exhibitions - is Cassini one of the college’s technical staff?  We know it is someone who has been connected to the college since around 2003 or 2004 who has been able to contribute to rca secret every year since then.

Who knows, it’s a fabulous mystery and one we rather hope will never be revealed.  It’s a glorious sub plot to the wonderful institution that rca secret has become and is one of the many reasons why we love it so much.

More contributor news

More exciting contributor news from fad magazine.  Plenty of big names to get your teeth into here and a different number of cards - more than 2000 are said to be exhibited in this article.

Full text here: 

Established in 1994, RCA Secret is London’s original postcard exhibition where supporters have the opportunity to purchase artwork by some of the world’s most celebrated artists, illustrators and designers, as well as up-and-coming graduates and students from the College. 

Each year supporters have their art credentials tested as the identity of their chosen artwork’s maker is kept secret and revealed only once the £60 donation is made. All proceeds go to the RCA Fund, which supports the next generation of RCA students. 

More than 2,000 postcard sized artworks will be exhibited this year and confirmed contributors include Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry, film director Ridley Scott, fashion designer Sir Paul Smith, conceptual, video and installation artist Jeremy Deller, artist Celia Hempton, conceptual artist Ryan Gander, painter and sculptor Maggi Hambling, fashion designer Sadie Williams, photomontage artist Peter Kennard, ceramicist Magdalene Odundo, contemporary artist Bob and Roberta Smith, sculptor Alison Wilding and fashion designer Richard Malone. 

Every contribution is an original artwork, produced with the same rigour as any other work by the maker. Although restricted to being postcard sized, the subject matter and approaches vary widely, from photography and collage to drawing, painting, and even sculpture and embroidery.

Previous contributors include renowned alumni and friends of the College David Bowie, Yoko Ono, Stella McCartney, David Bailey, Sir James Dyson, Tracey Emin, Anish Kapoor, Jarvis Cocker, Steve McQueen, Zandra Rhodes, Peter Blake and Yinka Shonibare.

RCA Secret will be open for viewing from Friday 30 November at the RCA’s Kensington campus. Supporters will have the opportunity to purchase their artworks from Saturday 1 December to Monday 3 December.

Images of all artworks in the exhibition will be released online from 9am on Thursday 29 November, 24 hours before the exhibition opens to the public. In order to purchase an artwork, supporters must register on the RCA Secret website to obtain a buyer’s ID. 

Preview day: Friday 30 November, 12 – 7pm
Exhibition & artwork selection: Sat 1 December 12 – 6pm; Sun 2 & Mon 3 December 10am – 6pm
Collection day: Thursday 6 December, 4 – 8pm

Senior Common Room, Royal College of Art Darwin Building, entrance off Jay Mews SW7 2EU
london.secret.rca.ac.uk/2018 #RCASecret

Grayson Perry a contributor to this year’s sale

Sponsors of rca secret Stewart’s law have revealed that Grayson Perry is a contributor to this year’s sale.  They also advise that there will be 1,800 cards in this year’s sale.

Here’s the full text of the article 

The Stewarts RCA Secret Exhibition 2018 runs from Friday 30 November to Monday 3 December, and has 1,800 anonymous postcard-sized pieces of art available to purchase.

Established in 1994, Stewarts RCA Secret is London’s original postcard exhibition where supporters have the opportunity to buy artwork by some of the world’s most celebrated artists, illustrators and designers, as well as up-and-coming graduates and students from the college.

This year, contributors include Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry, film director Ridley Scott, fashion designer Sir Paul Smith, conceptual, video and installation artist Jeremy Deller, painter and sculptor Maggi Hambling and Wallace and Gromit creator, Nick Park.

Each year, the exhibition’s supporters have their art credentials tested as the identity of their chosen artwork’s creator is only revealed once the £60 donation is made. All proceeds go to the RCA Fund, which supports the next generation of RCA students at a formative time in their careers.

Stewarts is proud to sponsor the RCA Secret Postcard exhibition for the 6th year running.

Images of the artworks in the exhibition will be available to view from 9am on Thursday 29 November, 24 hours before the exhibition is open. They will be available to view online here.

The exhibition will be held in the Senior Common Room at the Royal College of Art’s Darwin building, which is part of the Kensington Campus.

To be eligible to purchase the postcards, you will have to be registered via the RCA Secret’s website.

Countdown to the sale - our list of contributors

Really not long to go now and little news emanating from the college about contributors so we thought the below might give you something to pass the time.   


We are no clearer on how sale day is going to work and what systems the college will have in place to deal with the number of people who all will be turning up at 8 in the morning all with an expectation of being first, or near first, in the queue.  I very much hope the college have a cunning plan (they can't say they haven't been warned).


The lovely Anita Klein has confirmed to us that she has contributed again.  Needless to say her mini masterpieces won't be too difficult to spot. 


Also keep an eye out for Debbie Lawson's contributions.  Debbie did the amazing Red Bear (pictured) at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition which many commentators felt was the standout piece of that exhibition.  What will her postcards be???


Three of the very best RCA secret contributors have also confirmed they will be there again this year - Peter Jones, Elinor Evans and Susie Hamilton.  Any collector can be very proud to add a piece from these amazing artists to their collection. 


We also know the show will feature contributions from in no particular order K M Bosy, Emma Barnard, Broughton & Birnie, Wayne Chisnall, Jolanta Dolewska, Dorthe Kaergaard, Sarah Kurdika, Ray Richardson, Michael Angove, Frances Aviva Blane,  Nadia Nervo, Babette Wagenvoort, Angela Lamb, Lorraine K Snape, Anya Charikov-Mickleburgh, Pernille Braun, Liesel Thomas, Simon Leahy Clark, Andrew Bunce, Andrew Kulman, Jennie Edwards, Jo Lewis, Jospehine Halbert, Mark Gamsu and Jennifer Baird amongst no doubt many others.


Some more very wonderful artists on that list many of whom have supported the event for many years.