UKCPS Annual Exhibition 2008 - A note of thanks

More pictures from the UKCPS Annual Exhibition 2008 at Bristol

copyright Felicity Grace and used with kind permission

As each Annual Exhibition comes to an end it's time to note the thanks that are due to all those people who helped to make it happen.

Thanks to....

First and foremost, thanks are due of course to everyone who entered a picture for the competition - both UKCPS members and non-members. It goes without saying that there is no exhibition without all of you!

After the members the next most important person to thank in terms of making the Exhibition happen is Pat Heffer UKCPS, the Exhibition Director, who kindly provided me with the notes for the content of this blog post - but not the next few sentences! Putting on an exhibition each year is a massive exercise for any art society. It starts with first meetings with a gallery, continues through the maintenance of lots of administrative records and provision of support to members and non-members who are trying to get their entries right and in on time. Then images and support need to be provided to the three jurors. Plus a team of people need to be recruited and organised who also make very important contributions to making it all happen - as indicated below. Pat is very committed to the exhibition doing well and spends a lot of time each year making sure it is a success.

Thanks to the three jurors who reviewed and rated all the entries to the competition. Janie Gildow CPSA, RWA New Gallery curator Neil Murison Hon RWA, and Hannelore Warning, Group Product Manager, Art and Graphics, Faber Castell Ltd. Prizewinners were selected after the pictures had been hung in the Gallery by Neil Murison Hon RWA, assisted by appropriate judges for the awards given by individuals.

Thanks to Faber Castell, the 2008 exhibition sponsors. Faber-Castell's sponsorship enabled the society to exhibit at the Royal West of England Academy. Marion and Mike Bray, the UK distributors of Faber-Castell travelled to Bristol for the Private View and were very enthusiastic about the exhibition and spent a long time studying every picture.

Thanks to all those providing awards - Faber Castell, Staedtler, Derwent, Caran d'Ache, Legion paper (Stonehenge), Lyra and UKCPS members President Ann James Massey SWA KA CPSA UKCPS, Founder Bob Ebdon UKCPS, Chairman Peter Weatherill UKCPS and Sophie Roger .

Thanks to the Royal West of England Academy and the New Gallery. Gallery staff were very helpful especially Neil Murison, the Curator of the New Gallery, Peter Swan and Tanya Wildgoose.

More pictures from the UKCPS Annual Exhibition 2008 at Bristol

copyright Felicity Grace and used with kind permission

The UKCPS Exhibition could not happen at all without the very special team of people of UKCPS members and helpers (and their families) who help Pat and make an important contribution to its success.

• Thanks to Dave Richards UKCPS, who provides advice and valued support to Pat. Pat tells me that in principle Dave's main role is supposed to be running the Keswick Exhibition each year but that in reality he actually does a great deal more than that. For this year's Annual Exhibition thanks are due to Dave for designing the beautiful invitations and posters, writing all the picture labels and preparing the catalogue for printing.
• Thanks to all those who have helped transport juried entries from around the UK to and from the exhibition. Special mention to Roland Hall and his wife, Peter Woof UKCPS, Robin Borrett UKCPS and to Pat Heffer and her family who are all involved with storing and transporting a significant number of the exhibits. A very great deal of time also goes into wrapping and unwrapping pictures and posting back all those pictures which can't be transported
• Thanks to Jan Wilson who provided a demonstration on two days at the exhibition. This involved travelling from Maidstone and a four hour journey both ways.
• Thanks to Bob Ebdon who despite being officially 'retired' from UKCPS duties and not in the best of health created the special page on the website for the 'virtual' exhibition of all the exhibited entries.

I'll leave the final word to Pat

This is the first time we have held an exhibition in such a prestigious gallery. It was a great success and I felt a bit like a mother hen with her babies! We certainly opened people's eyes to what can be achieved with coloured pencils and promoted both the society and our favoured medium.....I look forward to Birmingham next year with a little trepidation but with a lot of enthusiasm!