How to Join the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours

Persons seeking membership should:

Have exhibited at the RI Annual Exhibition on at least two previous occasions.
Send a letter of application explaining why you wish to be considered as a candidate for election to membership and any relevant information to support the application. This letter should be sent, under separate cover, prior to submission of your paintings, to:

RI Membership Secretary, The Old Pottery Building, Down Lane, Compton, GU3 1DQ
Enclose, with the letter, a cheque for £20 payable to The Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours to cover the costs of processing the application.
Submit six watercolour paintings to the selection committee for the annual exhibition in the Spring. Submission schedules and full particulars are obtainable from:

Federation of British Artists, 17 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5BD

The schedule should be clearly headed "APPLICANT".

Applications and submitted paintings will then be considered at a special selection meeting of the Council. Thereafter applicants may be asked to submit a portfolio of additional work for consideration alongside the submitted work for the exhibition in the following year.

Should the Council decide to transfer the applicant directly on to the Candidates list the applicant will be requested to send in photoprints of all their submitted works for display in the forthcoming exhibition. It is therefore advisable to photograph all work before delivery.

Election to membership takes place by democratic vote of the full membership at the Annual General Meeting held after the close of the exhibition. If a Candidate is not elected by the AGM their name will remain on the list for a further two years.

Candidates work will be separately displayed during the exhibition so that members will have the opportunity of assessing it before voting. To assist in this Candidates will be asked to supply a photoprint of each of their six submitted paintings, together with any relevant back up material: e.g. CV, catalogues, etc.

Applicants and Candidates will be notified of the decisions of the Council but no correspondence can be entered into.