This year’s Royal Miniature Society (RMS) Exhibition made its exciting debut at the Bankside Gallery, on the South Bank of the Thames, London, which ran from June 28^th until July 8^th, 2023.

A record number of visitors attended the Grand Opening and Award Ceremony.  Philip Mould OBE gave a wonderful speech and congratulated the award winners – many of whom hadn’t exhibited with the RMS before.

With the success of the Innovation Award in 2021 and Young Artists Award (ages 18-30) in 2019, an additional award was launched in 2023 with a 16–17-year-old category. Our visitors expressed how wonderful the work is and how much at home the RMS seems to be in the new venue. The works on display were termed ‘inspiring’, ‘intriguing’, ‘LOVED IT! So unusual and unique’ and ‘wonderful surprises in each little frame’…

A Heartfelt Thank You:

With this years change of venue, came an enormous amount of extra work and organisation for our Officers, Council and Executive Secretary. The Exhibition simply wouldn’t happen without them!

There was much less time in which to unload all the cases and Miniatures from the van, set up the cases, and arrange, hang and number over 400 Paintings and Sculptures. It was an intensive, hot and tiring six hours, but we did it!

There has been lots of very positive feedback about the Exhibition, and we feel very at home in the bankside gallery. 

Thank you to everyone who has helped put on this amazing Exhibition, you always go the extra mile and it is very much appreciated!

Many thanks to Philip Mould OBE who officially opened the Exhibition and presented the Awards on 28 June 2023.

Thank you to our wonderful Judges: Dr Victoria Button and Alan Derbyshire.

Victoria Button is the Head of Paper Conservation for Royal Collection Trust. Prior to starting in this post, from 1999 to November 2022, Victoria had been a Senior Paper Conservator and Lead Project Conservator at The Victoria and Albert Museum.  Her Doctorate was awarded in 2013 and explored the function and use of Hans Holbein The Younger’s portrait drawings through his choice of materials and techniques. The Clothworkers’ Foundation funded Victoria’s training in the conservation of Portrait Miniatures from 2013-2016.  Victoria is an ICON Accredited Conservator.

Alan Derbyshire B.SC., Dip. Con. Currently: Director of Alan Derbyshire Art Conservation Ltd., – specialising in the conservation of Portrait Miniatures and works of art on paper. Alan works for various dealers, private collectors as well as many institutions around the world.
Previously: joined The V&A Museum as a Paper Conservator in 1983 and became Head of Paper, Books and Paintings Conservation until leaving in 2020. 2017 – 2019 External Examiner for The MA in Conservation of Fine Art, University of Northumbria, Newcastle. In 2018 awarded the Plowden Medal for Significant Contribution to the Advancement of the Conservation Profession and in particular, to the field of Paper Conservation and the conservation of Portrait Miniatures.