RSA Open 2011

Just in time for Christmas and opposite the premier shopping hub of Princes Street, this RSA exhibition makes its yearly concession to the commercial end of the contemporary art spectrum. The RSA Open turns the lower galleries of the Academy into something of a jumble sale. The only rule: that work may be no larger than 60 cm in any direction.

Certainly this makes this a show of truly affordable work. Prices range from £150 - £4000. However, as one might expect for such a mixed exhibition, the quality is variable. Popularist etchings like those by John Heywood jostle for attention with the cool collages of Philip Reeves and signature oil paintings of Joyce Cairns. Some beautiful work does manage to grab ones attention, take for example Hironori Katagiri’s wonderful granite circle or the vibrant watercolours of Eoghann Macoll.

Sometimes it feels that the hanging of this exhibition appears somewhat haphazard, even comically so. A little Elizabeth Blackadder still life is placed next to a minimally flat blue square by Michael Craik. Sculptures are scattered through the gallery space almost randomly on tall white plinths that often inhibiting ones path through.

However, it’s good to see a strong local dimension to the work on show. Edinburgh based artists like Paul Furneaux are exhibited alongside Charlie Stiven, Graeme Todd and John Brown, all tutors at Edinburgh College of Art, who are also joined by recent graduates Rachael Bibby and Ruth Nicol.

As with mixed exhibitions of this type there is a certain lack of coherence in style and content. There is nevertheless a lot of quality on show for those that are prepared to look.