The RWA Secret Postcard Auction

CLICK TO VIEW ALL ITEMS: https://www.32auctions.com/organizations/41913/auctions/81797?t=all

The ever-popular Secret Postcard Auction is back for another year. This hotly anticipated event offers the chance to purchase unique works of art by leading figures from the art and cultural world from just £40, while supporting the RWA (Registered Charity 1070163).

ABOUT THE ARTWORKS:

This year we’ve got another amazing line-up with hundreds of artworks to bid on. Each one measures roughly 14x19cm (unless otherwise stated), is signed on the back and accompanied by a certificate of authentication.

Since the artists remain a secret until after the auction, buyers either have to guess who the big name artists are or just buy what they like. Bidding on each work starts at just £40, which is a very reasonable price for a unique piece of art, and if it turns out to be by an internationally famous artist, it might just be the bargain of the century!

Because the artworks are anonymous at the point of purchase, each is deemed to have a fair market value of £40, and any amount above this is considered a donation for the purposes of Gift Aid.

PARTICIPATING ARTISTS:

Artists include Turner Prize winners including Antony Gormley, Anish Kapoor, Grayson Perry, Gilbert & George and Sir Richard Long.

There are Royal Academicians including Norman Ackroyd, Frank Bowling, Brian Catling, Eileen Cooper, Anthony Eyton, David Nash and Emma Stibbon, plus Past President Christopher Le Brun, plus our own brilliant Academicians, such as Derek Balmer, Stewart Geddes, Ken Howard, David Inshaw, Kurt Jackson, Janette Kerr and Dawn Sidoli.

Then we have acclaimed photographers including Magnum member Martin Parr, along with Susan Derges, Peter Lavery and Jem Southam; internationally renowned painters including Glenys Cour, Maggi Hambling, Susie Hamilton, Marcelle Hanselaar, Juliette Losq, Will Maclean and Joy Wolfenden Brown, and artist-illustrators including Angelina Ballerina illustrator Helen Craig; the always witty and brilliant Simon Drew and Sam Toft, and 2020 V&A Illustration Awards shortlisted Clive Hicks-Jenkins.

On top of this, we’ve also got world-famous animators Peter Lord and Nick Park (of Aardman fame), alongside brilliant talents better known in other fields, such as Harry Hill; Dame Joan Collins, and art-trained engineer Sir James Dyson, plus - uniquely - we can boast both JMW Turner and LS Lowry...well, the actor who played them both, Timothy Spall! A full list of contributors can be found here: https://buff.ly/2qE9AMi

Please note that some artists have contributed more than one artwork.

USEFUL LINKS:

FAQ: https://buff.ly/3hn1KA7

Full list of artists: https://buff.ly/2qE9AMi

Subscribe to hear about future opportunities to buy art: https://buff.ly/2vpNoYZ

Browse and buy art from our exhibitions: https://shop.rwa.org.uk/collections/shop

About RWA: http://rwa.org.uk/about-us

SPECIAL THANKS:

We are hugely grateful to all of the artists who have supported us by donating artworks.

We are also grateful for the support of St Cuthberts Mill and The Print Company.

This year’s auction has been made possible through Covid-19 emergency funding from Arts Council England.

UPDATE 16 JUNE 2020:
Thanks to the generosity of both contributing artists and bidders, we were able to meet our original target of £30,000 within 36 hours of opening the auction. The target has now been raised to £45,000, which will enable the RWA to resume its acclaimed creative work across Bristol once it is safe to do so, including free family activities in some of the city’s most deprived wards, and support for people with a wide range of physical and mental wellbeing challenges.

The RWA has been bringing great art to Bristol since 1844. We are unique not just in Bristol, but in the UK, in being a purpose-built Royal Academy of Art: somewhere that not only exhibits the best of historic and contemporary art, but that also nurtures new talent for the future, and does so using one of the most beautiful exhibition spaces in the country.

Last year’s Secret Postcard Auction raised almost £75,000 for the RWA's work, engaging some of Bristol's most vulnerable communities, at the RWA and in the community.

Thanks to such support, we are now recognised for making art and creativity accessible for everyone, which we have done through developing meaningful, respectful and lasting relationships with some of Bristol's most underserved communities. We do all this with less than 1% of our costs covered from the public purse, and in the face of the current cost of living crisis it is harder than ever to do this, so the Secret Postcard Auction is essential for this work to continue.

Other projects we’re working on, or have been working on, with communities recently include:-

• Tuesday Teatime Tours for people living with dementia and their companions
• Projects and exhibitions with disabled adults
• School holiday workshops for families and children and school group visits to exhibitions
• Happy Mondays sessions for autistic children and children with profound and multiple learning disabilities
• Free family Scribble and Sketch creative sessions in four areas of deprivation in Bristol
• Relaxed tours of the exhibition for babies under 12 months and their parents and work at Southmead Hospital for mothers with severe postnatal depression and their babies

“This is a great opportunity for people to explore a wealth of art by both famous and emerging artists, whilst at the same time supporting the continuation of our acclaimed work as an arts charity. Every ‘postcard’ – in reality, a small original artwork – is completely unique, and you could potentially walk away with a work from an internationally famous artist for a fraction of its value, so I encourage everyone to join us online for the auction and browse this exceptional range of artworks, so generously donated.” Alison Bevan, RWA Director

Registered Charity No 1070163