The Royal Society of Marine Artists’ Annual Exhibition at Mall Galleries in London, is widely recognised as the UK’s most significant showcase of marine art – a genre of special significance to an island nation whose frontiers lie where the sea begins.
This September, the exhibition celebrates its 80th anniversary, with around 450 original artworks for sale, by the very best contemporary marine artists, along with the most exciting new talent selected from an open submission. Lively and beautiful images of sailing, boats and yachts dominate the 2025 exhibition, powerful symbols of freedom, escape and self-reliance. In a period marked by a cost-of-living crisis, the dream of setting sail, of leaving daily pressures behind and charting one’s own course, resonates deeply.
Work featured in the RSMA 80th Anniversary Annual Exhibition is available to buy, in person and online. Visit https://live-mall-galleries.pantheonsite.io/exhibitions-events/royal-society-marine-artists-annual-exhibition-2025 for more information.
The Royal Society of Marine Artists’ (RSMA,) inaugural Annual Exhibition in October 1939 was delayed for seven years, due to the onset of the Second World War. It was finally held in November 1946 at the newly constructed Guildhall Art Gallery in the City of London and was opened by A.V. Alexander, the new Minister of Defence. The society has a strong association with the Royal Navy, with works by members held in the Imperial War Museum and the National Maritime Museum. Many leading international and national marine artists have been counted among the society’s membership with Montague Dawson, Rowland Hilder, Claude Muncaster, Charles Pears, Norman Wilkinson and Harold Wyllie to name but a few. This milestone 80th exhibition coincides, for the first time, with London’s International Shipping Week, adding to the city-wide celebration of maritime heritage and contemporary seafaring culture.
Marine art covers a diverse range of subjects, so the society, and its annual exhibition, has always represented an enormous variety of work. The common ground is the sea: whatever is on and beneath it.
RSMA President John Scott Martin commented; “We, like so many people, are all of us mad about the sea, and for the RSMA, this passion has been exhibited for 80 years. We stand spellbound by the shining water. Marine art has a special legacy in the UK as an island nation, both Constable and Turner (whose influence on mainstream art has been profound,) were both consummate marine artists. Today, paintings of the sailing, the sea and the marine environment provide a sense of escapist freedom many of crave.”
MALL GALLERIES, LONDON: 17 SEPTEMBER – 27 SEPTEMBER 2025
Time: 10am – 5pm
Admission: £6 (Free for Friends of Mall Galleries and under 25s, concessions available). No booking required
