King and Queen meet artists to celebrate 25 years of Royal Drawing School
The King and Queen have marked 25 years of the Royal Drawing School with a reception at St James's Palace.
The exhibition, The Power Of Drawing, features 50 works by well-known names and emerging talent, celebrating the act of drawing as a universal form of expression.
Among the contributors were artists David Hockney and Tracey Emin, filmmaker Tim Burton, designer Thomas Heatherwick and the King himself.
The King, who co-founded the school in 2000 with artist Catherine Goodman, praised its legacy in a speech to guests.
He said: 'I thought Catherine was the ideal person (to start the school).'
'We owe her a huge debt of gratitude.
'Seeing the paintings and drawings today – you can imagine how proud I am.
'I've always believed in investing in talent for the future.'
Highlights include Hockney's original charcoal pieces, Cut Trees And Timber Gone, and Burton's untitled watercolour, a rare public showing of his work on paper.
Emin, who contributed a 2024 piece titled Because You Left – I Held On, told the PA news agency: 'I think he's a fan of my work.
'What I feel really good about is it's for a good cause.
'King Charles has always loved and appreciated art and he's an artist himself.
'It makes sense and it's very appropriate.'
A standout moment from the evening came from Douglas Farthing, 58, a former Parachute Regiment soldier turned artist, who spent 16 months in Ukraine working with humanitarian teams.
His pencil sketches, drawn on the ground in and around Odesa, include portraits of civilians and scenes from the trenches.
'I retired and got into drawing through the school,' he said.
'When Ukraine happened, I spent 16 months out there with a humanitarian team.
'The King and I spoke briefly about it – he was very interested.
'He was my Colonel-in-Chief, so it meant a lot.'
Farthing, who has also worked in Gaza and South Sudan, said the school had been 'brilliant' at supporting its alumni long after graduation.
Grayson Perry, who attended the reception and is set to feature in the anniversary talks programme later this year, added: 'The Royal Drawing School is important.
'It's human, in a world of AI, drawing is the quintessential thing about being a human.'
Also in attendance was singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright, who performed Hallelujah on piano for the King and also contributed a piece to the exhibition.
'This is my first exhibit,' he said.
'I waited for the right venue. What's great about him is the world needs decent people – and he's great.'
The King's own contribution, a pencil sketch of the gardens at Highgrove, is also on show.
Founded as a not-for-profit institution, the Royal Drawing School offers more than 350 in-person and online courses a year, including its flagship postgraduate drawing year programme.
The Power of Drawing runs from July 1-26 at the Royal Drawing School in Shoreditch, east London.
A wider public programme of talks, masterclasses and events continues into 2026.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
21 minutes ago
- BBC News
Artists hope Leadmill will stay true to roots under new ownership
The last few artists are preparing to take to the stage at The Leadmill this week, before the building which houses the Sheffield music venue changes hands after 45 years. Electric Group, which bought the site in 2017, is set to take over operations after a three-year battle with The Leadmill – which owns the club's name and Kane, who will be the last artist to play it in its current form, said: "You have to move forwards, but it's a shame the iconic things can't just stay. It's a historic little venue."As grassroots spaces disappear across the country, artists are hoping the future venue at 6 Leadmill Road will continue giving a platform to up-and-coming musicians. Kane said: "You start in pubs, then 200-300 [capacity] venues, and then go a bit bigger – The Leadmill is one of the rungs on the ladder, so it's sad to see it coming to an end."Pulp, which played one of their first ever gigs at The Leadmill in 1980, Richard Hawley and Arctic Monkeys all credit the club as a key part of their early careers. "For younger bands that have been to see artists there, it'll be their goal to get to a venue like that, because it's got all this history," Kane K's frontman Jamie Boyle, who performed sold-out shows at The Leadmill on Saturday and Sunday, said it had been a "massive part" of his career so far."It's a bit surreal that the fans are showing out the way they are in such an iconic venue. It sounds cliché, but we love [The Leadmill], we genuinely do."The K's played there about 15 times, including supporting other artists, he said."It is a proper grassroots venue, which are few and far between in a lot of cities. There are so many shutting down all over the place," he added."I hope whoever has it next continues the legacy of giving up-and-coming artists a go." The Music Venue Trust (MVT), a charity which aims to protect grassroots venues, said a quarter of its members faced permanent closure last year, while major cities like Bath and Leicester were being left off touring said: "It's one of the last proper grassroots venues of its size. A lot of venues [feel like] you could be in any city, it's all very corporate. I hope it keeps its charm."In an ideal world, they just completely leave it alone and don't change a thing."Electric Group CEO Dominic Madden has not confirmed the specifics of his plans, other than the fact it will remain a music venue and undergo a said: "[We intend] to create a touring standard space, hosting the coolest club brands and music and live shows, just like we do in Brixton, Newcastle and Bristol."Initially up for debate, one thing certain to change is the venue's name. After serving The Leadmill's management with an eviction notice, Electric Group said the business would keep its at the beginning of a civil court battle between the two companies in May 2024, The Leadmill's lawyers said continuing the business in the same vein would be a human rights Group then said they would rename the building and would not reference its flour mill eventually won the case to evict the venue's management, and after the tenant's request to appeal was rejected in May, the building's future was sealed.A spokesperson for MVT said: "The ownership of the buildings which house grassroots music venues [is] the underlying cause of their precarious financial situation and high-risk status."Mr Madden said that by purchasing the freehold in 2017, Electric Group has saved The Leadmill from being turned into who has been playing the venue for about 20 years, said: "It will become something else, it will be a different vibe and a whole different feng shui, shall we say. But you don't know [how] until you cross that bridge."He said he was "honoured" and "quite shocked" to be asked to play the venue's final gig on Friday."I'm ready to go. Let's blow the roof off The Leadmill and give it a good send-off." Listen to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North
Daily Mail
27 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Tom Cruise shares telling comment amid feud speculation with Brad Pitt after reuniting on red carpet for first time in more than 20 years
and Brad Pitt 's first red carpet reunion in 24 years certainly left fans talking and they even sparked speculation of a feud. The Hollywood megastars last appeared alongside each other on screen more than three decades ago, in 1994 horror Interview with the Vampire. They were last believed to have been pictured on a red carpet together just years later at the 2001 America: A Tribute to Heroes benefit concert. However, on Monday, they finally reunited at the F1 European premiere in London, sending fans completely wild. Their reunion was full of smiles and laughs, but one 'awkward' moment prompted some wild rumours of a feud after they failed to go in for a hug in one video. Fans were convinced there was more going on between the pair after the 'awkward' handshake, though others pointed out that they had hugged earlier in the night. They were last believed to have been pictured on a red carpet together just years later at the 2001 America: A Tribute to Heroes benefit concert And now, Tom has now seemingly shut down the speculation as he shared a series of jovial photographs of himself and Brad on the carpet alongside some kind words. In a sweet tribute, the Mission: Impossible star gushed in a post shared to X: 'Great night at the movies with my friends!! You guys crushed it!!' The video in question showed the duo clasping hands and bumping chests before posing side-by-side in a moment which fans deemed 'awkward' on social media. Comments included: 'Tom not immediately going for a hug oh they hate each otherksjfkfkdkfdkdk'; 'They really don't like each other I fear LMAO'; 'He put his arm between them like a shield soooo fast'; 'Hands near the pockets til the absolute last moment acceptable this is old school diva-ism'; 'This is hard to watch lmao'; 'I'm glad we all agree on how to read this situation.' However, other fierce defenders argued the pair had already hugged earlier that day - tweeting pictures of the embrace. And now, Tom has now seemingly shut down the speculation as he shared a series of jovial photographs of himself and Brad on the carpet alongside some kind words Though they haven't worked together in more than 30 years, they proved their friendship is now going strong with their jovial red carpet reunion Brad previously said Tom was the North Pole and he was South as he described their differences working together more than 30 years ago They remarked: 'That's because they had already hugged each other earlier before going to that area'; 'They hugged before that.' The pair famously starred together in the 1994 gothic horror flick Interview with the Vampire, where Tom played the cold and calculating vampire Lestat, while Brad portrayed the tortured Louis. The film was a hit, but there were rumours at the time the two didn't see eye-to-eye off-camera. In an interview about the movie, Brad said Tom was the North Pole and he was South, according to Closer. Though they haven't worked together in more than 30 years, they proved their friendship is now going strong with their jovial red carpet reunion.
The Independent
31 minutes ago
- The Independent
Molly Mae reveals Bambi hasn't eaten in three days as she makes parenting confession
Molly-Mae Hague has revealed that her daughter Bambi refused to eat for three days, confessing to her fans that she is finding parenting 'really hard'. In a YouTube video posted on Sunday (22 June), the former Love Island star, who shares her two-year-old with Tommy Fury, said that she has been having a 'really tough' few days, where she has questioned if she is 'cut out' for motherhood. In a candid confession, the influencer said: 'I'm having one of those days where I'm finding [Bambi] impossible, absolutely impossible. 'Every single thing I try and ask her to do, she will not listen to me.'
