The Royal Collection
Windsor Castle
Let me tell you about the Royal Collection Project...
The Royal Collection of H.R.H. King Charles III includes 75 contemporary Canadian watercolours, the largest Canadian group in the collection. These works were compiled by the Canadian Society of Painters in Watercolour (CSPWC) to mark its 60th and 75th anniversaries in 1985 and 2000. They are housed in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle, along with most of the Royal Collection's works on paper.
How is this significant?
The Royal Collection is one of the world’s largest and most important art collections. It is one of the last remaining great European royal collections. With over a million objects, including paintings, sculptures, furniture, jewellery and books, it is a unique record of the personal tastes of British kings and queens over the past 500 years.
Again, this project is the largest Canadian component to the entire collection!
Why am I telling you this?
Recently, the CSPWC adjudicated a final 25 paintings into the Royal Collection Project making it a total of 100 Canadian Watercolours, to celebrate their upcoming 100 year anniversary in 2025.
I'm proud and honoured to share the news that my painting Royal HBC was selected for the collection!
There was a large panel of 15 jurors that included CSPWC members who have work in the Royal Collection as well as Head of Prints/Drawings & Assistant Curator of the Royal Collection. They had the hard task to choose from 86 submissions and I learned that the competition scores were incredibly close. The difference between the lowest and highest scores were only 1.6 points, meaning it was a deeply competitive process.
“Royal HBC”, Watercolour on Paper, 11” x 15.5”, 2024
What now?
I'm going to scream this news from the rooftops for a few weeks while preparations for an exhibition begin.
In January 2025, all 25 paintings will be unveiled in a virtual gallery. Then in November they will be shown at the Arts & Letters Club in Toronto to coincide with the CSPWC 100 year anniversary.
One day I hope to visit the Royal Library to see my painting in person in its forever home.
