SUTTON VIEWS - Sutton Valence School

James draws the crowds with his exhibit
at the Summer Exhibition
James Allen, Art Technician at the Senior
School, has had a major piece of work
accepted into this year’s Royal Academy of
Arts’ Summer Exhibition.
An essential part of the London art
calendar, The Royal Academy's Summer
Exhibition, which opened earlier this month,
is the largest open contemporary art
exhibition in the world, drawing together a
wide range of new and recent work by
established, unknown and emerging artists.
James specialises in charcoal drawings of
buildings and architecture, both inside and
out. His portfolio includes everything from
the Natural History Museum to Liverpool St
Station.
His exhibit, one of several studies of
Embankment Underground Station, is one of
the first pieces of a new series which focuses
on the entrances and exits to train stations.
The drawing was snapped up on buyers’ day
at the beginning of the exhibition, which
James hopes is a good sign of things to come.
James said, “Charcoal is the perfect
medium for reflecting the industrial
landscape of stations and for capturing the
expressions of the madding crowd, some
happy, some hostile. The exhibition is the
largest and oldest open-submission
exhibition in the world and receives more
than 11,000 applications each year. Only the
best make it through the rigorous selection
process, so this is hugely exciting for me.”
HRH the Prince of Wales has one of
James’ drawings in his personal collection
and he has been a regular exhibitor at the
Sidney Cooper gallery in Canterbury and
others in the City of London..
James, who has worked at School since
2009, said, “Although I’ve made it into the
exhibition this year, competition is always
tough and there are no guarantees for the
future. I feel very privileged to have been
included, it has been a great experience and
I am enjoying the moment.”
16 Sutton Views