The Pastel Society

Pastel Society | Annual Exhibition 2026

The 127th Annual

Exhibition

of the

Pastel Society

'Sun Rising with promise of a good day' - By Simon Hodges VPPS

DIRECT

TOUCH

Key Dates

Submissions open: Monday 18 August 2025, 12 noon

Submissions close: Friday 14 November, 12 noon

Notification of selection: Friday 28 November, 12 noon

Receiving Day (if selected): Saturday 10 January 2026,
10am to 5pm

Private View (invite only): Tuesday 20 January, 5pm to 8pm, official opening at 6:30pm

Exhibition opens: Wednesday 21 January, 10am to 5pm daily

Exhibition closes: Saturday 31 January, 5pm

Collection of unsold work: Thursday 5 February,
10am to 5pm

Submission Criteria for Acceptable Media

Interview with Caran d'Ache CEO, Carole Hübscher
Caran d'Ache are Sponsors of the Pastel Society

THE ReMARK October 2025

Personally, I have always been one for keeping things simple and the title for the next annual exhibition, ‘Direct Touch' beautifully echoes that. But in a complicated world, outside forces can scupper such simple ideas. In this case, unfortunately, our annual workshops at Heatherleys had to be cancelled at the last moment because of transport issues. We thank everyone for their understanding and patience and are hoping to be able to improve things with a date sooner rather than later next year. Watch this space.

For our new and not so new members, our Members’ Guide will go onto the website this month. This is intended to be a comprehensive briefing on what it means to be a member. Jayne Perkins, one of our new members, initiated it after having many questions about the Society that she could not find the answers to, and I helped her put it together.

We are already adding more information to it, but if anyone has useful information to add at any time, just let us know. This cannot be allowed to become a static document but is one that should serve for many decades to come.

Despite the fact that all minds will now become focused on PS Annual Exhibition 2026, our Exhibition Secretary, Jane Hodgson and a number of members have been doing a lot of work putting together other possible exhibition venues for the future. It is our hope that PS Members work will not only continues to be shown in the exhibitions of private galleries, but in exhibitions run by ourselves with more chance for interaction between the society and the public. But first, a detailed proposal needs to be put together for the membership to approve. Again, watch this space.

The updating of the website goes on quietly behind the scenes led internally by our website Officer Cheryl Culver working with our new website designer Andrew Sharman of Uproar Creative.

And finally, Friends, where are your images? Did we set the bar too high with ‘Mrs. Maw’ last month or was it just bad timing on my part? I give you another by an artist who popped into the exhibition last year and sketched in the studio. No name to acknowledge, but I was the subject. Love it!

Send this by the 28 October 2025 to info.thepastelsociety@gmail.com

Good painting and keep the submissions coming for DIRECTTOUCH, PS Annual Exhibition 2026 to the Mall Galleries. Deadline 14th November 2025.

Simon B. Hodges VPPS

Self Portrait

Fleet Street from Ludgate Hill

Trees Les Menuires

The Bovril Building Winter Rush Hour

Earthenware 4

Earthenware 3

Featured Artist

Benjamin Hope PS NEAC RSMA ROI

Artist's Statement:

I draw and paint directly from life, both in the studio and outside. Working in this way results in marks that are reactive, and for me, it is the best way to capture what it feels like to be with the subject. I also create much larger studio paintings based on small plein air studies. In these I try to recreate the energy and atmosphere of the smaller work using a more complex layering of the medium.

Biographical Details:

Benjamin took an unconventional route to a career in fine art. As the son of artist Jane Hope, he was introduced to painting at an early age, but he decided against Art School and instead pursued Mathematics and Physics, culminating in a PhD from Cambridge University. After graduating from Cambridge, Benjamin had a spell as a ‘quant’ in the City in order to set up a studio in South East London, and in 2011 he left the City to begin focusing on his art full-time. As well as the Pastel Society, Benjamin is an elected member of the New English Art Club, the Royal Society of Portrait Painters and the Royal Society of Marine Artists.