EXHIBITIONS
The Society holds two exhibitions annually — one in Spring, one in Autumn.
These exhibitions are usually well-attended and appreciated. For the Spring exhibition, we invite judges to choose three recipients for the Vera Skinner Awards of £250, £150 and £100, as well as three highly commended pieces. For the Autumn exhibition, we invite attendees to vote for their favourite artwork, and the artist whose work attracts the most votes is awarded the Appleyard Trophy and £100.
Submissions are usually limited to either one or two exhibition artworks plus five browser artworks/small 3D and cards. We also encourage members to submit 3D works. We don’t exhibit photographs. Works are not usually subject to selection, so this is a great opportunity for everyone to exhibit.
Currently these exhibitions are being held at Black Swan Arts, Frome.
Only members may submit works for these.
Exhibition News …
2026 Winter Exhibition Report
During our exhibition in the Round Tower in December 2025, we sold a total of 13 paintings from the wall out of the 95 displayed, 8 paintings from the browsers out of 98 displayed, and 90 greeting cards. We are pleased to announce that Ian Thomas received the Appleyard Trophy for his watercolour titled ‘Winter Wander’, which was voted the favourite painting by the visiting public.
A big thank-you to all the members who helped with assembling, stewarding and administering the exhibition. There is a lot of work involved in checking, altering, and printing the details of so many paintings and then paying money for sales to members. We are fortunate to have so many talented artists to make such a successful exhibition.
We are now looking forward to supporting the Black Swan in their 40th anniversary year with a month-long exhibition in the Long Gallery, 16th May to 21st June 2026. Watch this space for details coming soon.
The Society would like to express our gratitude to Averil Morrow for stepping in at short notice to run the Winter Exhibition. She successfully organised a wonderful event. Thank you, Averil, for always being there and for your generous contribution of time to the Society.
Exhibition News …
2025 Spring Exhibition Report
Thank you to all who helped make it a success including the invited judge, Caroline Rudge, who had the challenging task of choosing the prize-winners:
2024 Autumn Exhibition Report
This was another very successful exhibition for the Frome Art Society. As usual, members submitted a wide variety of interesting and exciting artworks for the show, which was held in the Round Tower at Black Swan Arts. Huge thanks are due to everyone who helped at every stage. Our preview evening was well-attended and enjoyed, despite coinciding with wild weather and closed roads!
The exhibition ran for a fortnight, during which over 900 people visited. The Comments Book made it evident that visitors had very much enjoyed the works on show.
11 framed paintings and 14 unframed original artworks and prints were sold, as well as many printed cards. The Public Vote attracted nearly 200 entries, and the winning work was Violet Von Riot’s collage, entitled ‘Pink Pup’. She was duly awarded the Appleyard Trophy and prize money of £250.
2024 Spring Exhibition Report
Once again, we had a highly successful exhibition at the Black Swan Long Gallery with a record number of paintings entered, 13 sold from the wall and 6 sold unframed. Many members took advantage of the maximum size of 100 cm, but the hangers were not daunted. All paintings were hung and there were many compliments about the layout.
Thank you to all who helped make it a success including the invited judge, Stoney Parsons, who had the challenging task of choosing the prize-winners:
