I’m not sure whose idea it was to take a group photograph of all the RAs to celebrate its 250th. birthday. It wasn’t easily done. The photographer was Johnnie Shand Kydd, who came to fame as a photographer with his instamatic. I enjoyed watching him choreograph about eighty artists up the staircase in Burlington Gardens – not an easy task – all dressed up in their overcoats and hats to ward against the cold and look forward to the result, which will be effortlessly dominated by Frank Bowling RA who arrived wearing a solar topee.
| Charles | Saumarez | Smith | 
The Frank Bowling Solar Topee is glorious, I can’t wait to see the photograph.
We’ll be on our annual trek from Tasmania to London in July and I’m looking forward to seeing the new RA and really sorry we aren’t able to be there for the Charles I or the Pre-Raphaelites.
But there will be a bumper edition of the Summer Exhibition and The Great Spectacle about the history of the Summer Exhibition, as well as the new buulding. Charles