Collection: Royal West of England Academy

Collection-level records:

• Collection history (Collection development policy)

  In the early days of the RWA and its predecessor, The Bristol Academy for the Promotion of the Fine Arts (as it was known from 1844 to 1913), a collection of works of art was formed of members’ work and items donated to the Academy. The core of the collection at this time was founded with works left in trust by Mrs Ellen Sharples, and further works were purchased with her bequest in 1849.

  In 1910, the then President, Lord Winterstoke, founded the building of the Bristol Municipal Art Gallery and arranged to transfer the RWA’s historical collections (including portraits known as the Sharples Collection – of American as well as Bristol interest) to the Art Gallery on a long- term loan. In 1931, by mutual agreement, the Bristol City Art Gallery purchased this loan collection from the Academy. Since then most works purchased by the RWA for its permanent collection have been funded by the Mrs Augusta Talboys Bequest of 1947 (known as ‘The Talboys Bequest’) and usually acquired from RWA exhibitions. The Talboys Bequest is a registered subsidiary charity of the RWA Main Charity (registered number 1070163-1) and as such is separate and legally distinct from the RWA Main Charity (Direction dated 13 April 2007 issued by the Charity Commission under Section 96 of the Charities Act 1993).

  Under the terms of Mrs Talboys’ Will dated 30 April 1918 and amended by a codicil dated 29 May 1924, she bequeathed a large endowment to the Trustees of the RWA upon trust to apply the income in the purchase of works of Bristol artists who were members or associates of the Academy selected by the President and Artists’ Chairman from the works from time to time exhibited at exhibitions of the RWA. Some years later, the Academy was advised by the Charity Commissioners that there were legal difficulties in the definition of ‘Bristol Artists’ and that henceforth the Trustees of the RWA could purchase works with income from the Talboys Bequest by any artist (Academician) member of the Academy whether from Bristol or not selected by the President and the Artist’s Chairman for the time being from exhibitions of the RWA. The works were purchased on the understanding that they would thereafter belong to the Academy with power to lend, exchange or sell any of them (the proceeds of sale to be added to the endowment or to be applied in repairs or additions to the RWA building or for any other purpose in carrying out the work of the RWA).

  In 1998 the present registered company and charity, the RWA, was established and by two further Schemes both dated 1 July 1998 the Charity Commission ordered that the RWA Main Charity would henceforth be the trustee of the Talboys Bequest and the 1844 Charity.

  Since 1998, the ownership of the RWA’s permanent collection has resided partly with the RWA Main Charity and the partly with the 1844 Charity. The remaining works of art originally bequeathed by Mrs Ellen Sharples (see below) in the collection remained in the ownership of the 1844 Charity. The main body of the collection was transferred to the RWA Main Charity.

  In 2009, the RWA underwent significant governance changes to enable the RWA Main Charity to address more effectively the management and financial challenges which the RWA faces as an independent arts organisation. A modern charitable trust board (‘the Board’), whose members also became the members of the incorporated company constituting the RWA Main Charity, took the place of the Academicians’ Council as the governing body of the RWA. In adopting these changes the RWA returned to the spirit of its founding arrangements in terms of accepting governance by a body of all the talents including business and professional people as well as artists and arts professionals. The duties of the Board include focusing on the interests of audiences and placing the RWA on a sustainable basis for the longer term.

  The members of the Board are accordingly also the charity Trustees of the 1844 Charity and the Talboys Bequest, and as such are the legal owners and guardians of the collection.

  Source: Collection development policy

  Date: 2022

  Licence: CC BY-NC

• Collection overview (Collection development policy)

  The RWA’s permanent collection comprises over 1800 works of art, the majority being paintings alongside drawings, prints, sculpture, archives, artefacts and architectural models. The collection comprises fine examples of portraiture, landscapes, still life, abstract and figurative work by predominantly South West artists.

  Within the collection, a small but significant group of 19th Century work relates to the period of RWA’s establishment acquired by virtue of the Sharples bequest in 1849.

  The most substantial group comprises around 900 works bought since 1941 through the Talboys Bequest. These include significant works by major 20th Century artists such as Vanessa Bell, Duncan Grant, Dod Procter, Gilbert Spencer, Carel Weight, Mary Fedden, Ann Redpath and Julian Trevelyan. This is an unrivalled body of work by a range of artists with close connections with Bristol and the West of England post-1941 and includes paintings, drawings, prints and sculpture.

  A requirement that all new RWA members must donate a diploma work to the collection adds a continuing contemporary element to the collection.

  Following HLF investment in 2012, the collection is housed in a dedicated store with rolling racking and stable environmental conditions. Preventive and remedial conservation work has been undertaken on a number of works in the collection and a rolling programme of further work is planned, subject to funding.

  Source: Collection development policy

  Date: 2022

  Licence: CC BY-NC