Summer Exhibition Stories

Discover the origins, characters, behind-the-scene stories as well as the experiences of visitors and artists in the history of the RA Summer Exhibition, the world’s largest open submission of contemporary arts, with the RA Senior Curator of Collections Helen Valentine. Image caption: The 163rd Summer Exhibition, 1931: Sending In Day and works of art are being moved into the Academy for selection. / Unidentified photographer working for Sport and General Press Agency Photo credit: © Royal Academy of Arts, London