IIf you read The Guardian’s recent scathing review of the Royal Academy’s summer exhibition, calling it “a miserable garden party of poor taste”, and feel sorry for the artists who took part, spare a moment a thought for those who didn’t measure up.
The RA selected 1,700 works to exhibit this year, but rejected nearly ten times that number – meaning someone deemed the works to be of lower quality than what critic Jonathan Jones described as “tepid, polite and meaningless”. Ouch!
No need to feel sorry anymore, because some of those poor souls who weren’t selected will see their work get a second chance at a show that will make them fall into the arms of the show rather than succumb to the idea of rejection.
“I kept seeing people posting on Instagram about amazing work being rejected,” gallerist Shauna Brand said. “It was really disappointing that it wasn’t going to be shown, so I wanted to do something.”
Brand called on other artists whose work had not been shortlisted by the RA and quickly assembled a small but talented roster of artists whose rejected works this year include everything from gay-themed screen prints to underwater photography.
“Rejection is a big part of being an artist,” Brand says. “It’s not a reflection on the quality of the work.” Indeed, the list of names that have so far been snubbed by the exhibition includes Édouard Manet, RA president Rebecca Salter, and Banksy, who was rejected from a 2018 exhibition after submitting work under the anagrammatic name Brian S. Gaakman (the Academy eventually exhibited his work after asking him to resubmit it under his better-known name).
Hannah Pratt Pratt has been rejected by the RA “four or five times” so far. “It’s a familiar feeling to be rejected, let’s put it that way,” she says, with some cheer. Taking part in the RA’s summer show is a big deal for Pratt; her mother used to take her to the show every year as a child, and she is eager to be able to point out her own work on the wall. “It will be a great milestone,” she acknowledges. “And professionally speaking, there will be a lot of gallerists and collectors in the show.”
Pratt started out as a painter, but gradually moved through various mediums to his current practice of intricate textile pieces born from his love of science. This year’s rejected piece was part of his “Colour of Starlight” series, in which he used AI to work out the colours of the constellations and then create pieces with threads that match those colours. The work is beautiful and technically challenging, but the crudeness of the pieces can be disheartening. do Will it be accepted for the RA show?
“Well, to be diplomatic, there are some things that I don’t like,” she says, “but there are always some great ones. And the quality of the work is really good overall; it’s all very nicely done.”
Pratt says art school helps make artists stronger, because you’re constantly forced to justify your work to your instructors. Still, the first time she faced failure, it hurt. “Artists are generally sensitive, but you’re still expected to have a pretty thick skin,” she says. For Pratt, rejection can be especially tough. “I have pretty bad dyslexia and dyspraxia, so if I have to write a really long funding application, it often takes me days. Sometimes I’m like, ‘Oh, that took hours!’ But I’ve learned to usually shake it off and move on to the next thing. There are always other opportunities.”
Brand wanted to stage Rejects because her own experience in the art world was one of rejection: “I don’t have a degree in art history, so I was never given a chance in the industry,” she says, eventually leading her to start her own gallery. Art Friendhas grown into a welcoming space for creatives and art lovers who might normally be put off by the industry’s snobbish attitudes and art jargon. She says that rejection can also be a positive, noting that if she had been accepted for some of the many jobs she applied for, she might never have had the opportunity to pursue this passion project.
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Another artist appearing in the show is Craig KeenanKeenan creates cyanotypes – camera-free photographs that use ultraviolet light and iron salts to create vivid blueprints. Keenan says he found great success early on as an artist, having his work accepted or shortlisted for various awards and exhibitions. So it came as a huge shock when the RA told him seven years ago that his work wouldn’t be included in their summer show. “I took it very personally,” he says. “But in a way I’ve gotten used to rejection – it’s part of being an artist.”
These days, he’s become much more accepting of how his work is received. “All my work is blue and white,” he says, “but of course that doesn’t mean it’s for everyone.”
It also probably helps that Keenan has experienced both sides of the RA Summer Show: his work has been rejected many times and accepted twice, making him living proof that rejection doesn’t always mean rejection in the future.
Brando hopes to break down the taboo surrounding rejection through the show. She’s also created a line of “REJECTS” badges and tote bags. On InstagramArtists have shared their past failures in the comments section, and Brand says that about 400 artists applied to be part of this year’s show, far more than she can accommodate.
Hold on a second… so that means some people got rejected from the REJECTS show?!
“Hmm, well,” Brand replied, a little nervously, then decided, “Maybe we could just go on and do this as a dropout show for these dropouts?”
