I have been going to the Summer Exhibition for 5 years now, each year it becoming less and less of a novelty. Even though I enjoy going, the magic of being greeted with several rooms full of different genres of art has begun to rub off. However, this year, for the first time in a while, I was inspired again by what surrounded me. This year it was curated by Yinka Shonibare, a British Nigerian artist who is most famous for incorporating life size mannequins and Dutch waxed printed cloth into his eye-catching work. The theme was ‘reclaiming magic’, which I can confidently say was achieved.

This year, art outside of Western artistry was put on display, diversifying the usually more Eurocentric exhibition. Work that was originally written off as being marginal, as it did not fit Western ideals, took centre stage and challenged its audience to reclaim it. Shonibare’s approach was inspired by an African American artist called Bill Traylor, who was born into slavery in 1854. This not only gave this forgotten artist a voice but also showed how older art can be utilised to reflect modern day issues, in this case, recent BLM demonstrations. I’ve always thought that where in the gallery you place the pieces of art are almost as important as the pieces themselves. That’s why I loved Shonibare’s choice to hang all of Traylor’s art on red painted walls, to bring attention to them and bring them new founded visibility in a renowned institution.

One of my favourite series of work in the gallery were the selection of brightly coloured quilts made by a group of African women. They had created their own enterprise on the plantation and the Summer Exhibition was the place where their story was finally brought to light. The ‘Legacy of Slavery’ could be found throughout the exhibition, for example Hew Locke’s admission. The British sculptor created ‘Colston Day 1’ which is a photo of the sculpture of the famous Bristol slave trader Edward Colston. The photo is of before it had been triumphantly taken down and is adorned by Locke with ‘chains and colourful cloth’. This demonstrated the switch in power dynamic and the joyous freedom of expression in modern times.

As well as the art this year being diverse in its heritage, it was also diverse in its type of media. All sorts of different materials were used by artists, from knitted material to recycled electric cables to magnitudes of masking tape. For me, one of the most poignant works was the portrait of George Floyd made entirely out of Hamma beads, by Ian Wright. Next to it was a piece by Faith Ringo and Shonibare stated that these two works were a ‘starting point’ for the main ideas of the exhibition. This included civil liberties and diversity in our times which can be captured by artists.

The Summer Exhibition has been going on for 250 years, not even closing during the War, it’s rich history adding to its undeniable charm. It’s unique access makes it more appealing as anyone is allowed to submit their work, it is completely open to the public. As I have said previously, I am always most interested in the way the art has been laid out, and by putting art by famous artists next to art by someone who could be your next door neighbour, is extremely impactful. It encompasses for all people, encourages inclusion and being inspired to take up a creative outlet. As you can purchase the art displayed, the proceeds go to the RA school which is one of the only schools that provide a free MA in fine art, another one of its great qualities. I think that the sudden influx of great art in this year’s exhibition was due to the pandemic as many took solace in art and decided to fill their time with creating their own work.

Overall, I think this exhibition was great. Inclusion was smeared over every wall and it felt revived and fresh. It’s theme of representation was key and the novelty that I thought was wearing off has been awakened again, the magic reclaimed.