The Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolours (RSW) is a Scottish organisation of painters. The first preliminary meeting of the society took place in Glasgow on 21 December 1877 as a reaction to a lack of interest in watercolour art by existing exhibitors. The society was inaugurated on 4 March 1878 with the election of its first president, Sir Francis Powell and vice president, Sam Bough. Its first exhibition of 172 pictures took place in November. It was founded to "promote, through exhibition, the medium of watercolour and encourage the bold, free and colourful qualities of Scottish Painting." The society received permission from

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

to use the prefix "Royal" in February 1888. In around 1894 the society changed its rules to allow female artists to be admitted with the same privileges as male artists. Throughout its history many renowned artists have been members, including David McClure,

William McTaggart William McTaggart (25 October 1835 – 2 April 1910) was a Scottish landscape and marine painter who was influenced by Impressionism. Life and work The son of a crofter, William McTaggart was born in the small village of Aros, near C ...

, Adam Bruce Thomson, Claire Harrigan, George Paul Chalmers, Alison Dunlop,

William Somerville Shanks William Somerville Shanks ARSA, RSA, RSW (28 September 1864 – 28 July 1951) was a Scottish artist who was a tutor in painting and drawing at the Glasgow School of Art for 29 years. His painting ''Tiddley Winks'' sold for £181,250 at Sot ...

Elizabeth Blackadder Dame Elizabeth Violet Blackadder, Mrs Houston, (24 September 1931 – 23 August 2021) was a Scottish painter and printmaker. She was the first woman to be elected to both the Royal Scottish Academy and the Royal Academy. In 1962 she began ...

and

Barbara Rae Barbara Davis Rae CBE RA FRSE (born 10 December 1943) is a Scottish painter and printmaker. She is a member of the Royal Scottish Academy and the Royal Academy of Arts. Biography Rae studied painting at the Edinburgh College of Art from 1 ...

. Past presidents include William J L Baillie (1975–1988), Ian McKenzie Smith (1988–1998), Philip T L Reeves (1998–2005), John Inglis (2005–2016); the current president is Jim Dunbar. Past vice presidents include Alison Dunlop, Helga Chart, Gregor Smith and Iona Montgomery.

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Organization homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolour 19th-century art groups 1876 establishments in Scotland Scottish art Society of Painters in Watercolour Scottish artist groups and collectives

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