Rua history

At a meeting on 15th April 1885, in the Amalgamated Engineers Hall, College Street, Belfast, a decision was made to stage a much larger exhibition to further extend membership.

The Library Committee invited the Ramblers’ Club to stage an exhibition in 1889 and agreed to waive the proposed charges of £8, £6, and £4 per week respectively for the three rooms when the Ramblers’ Club promised not to charge an admittance fee.

In 1892 the Belfast Art Society moved to new premises at 49, Queen Street and in the same year, Walter Osborne was elected an honorary member.

The Joint Art Committee was formed in 1905 from membership of the Belfast Art Society, the Ulster Arts Club and the Ulster Institution of Architects to lobby for the arts in Belfast and above all to press for a dedicated public art gallery.

Prior to this, in May 1906, the Art Committee organised an exhibition of modern paintings and convinced Hugh Lane to become honorary director.

John Lavery began submitting works in 1911 and his “Lady in Black” was the main attraction of the Annual Exhibition in 1911.

For the first time, in 1920, the Society decided to pay the secretary a sum of £30 per annum but the treasurer’s post remained an honorary one.

In October 1930, a new category was introduced and eight Associates were elected, Mrs McCready, Theo Gracey, Donald McPherson, Snr., Stanley Prosser, W. Arthur Fry, Frederick Girling, John Hunter and Frank Wiles.

By 1932, however, the new Ulster Academy Council decided to rent the top floor of the Old Museum and to employ a full time caretaker to allow open public access to the gallery.

However in 1934 the Academy decided to hold its Annual Exhibition of 242 works in the Academy’s own gallery and in the adjoining lecture room in College Square.

The latter, retitled the Arts Council in 1960, was an important development for the arts in general and specifically for the Academy, which has benefited from grants to the present day, enhancing the quality of the exhibition catalogues and the Academy’s education programmes.

For a detailed account see Martyn Anglesea “The Royal Ulster Academy of Arts: A Centennial History” 1981.

Interestingly the Irish Exhibition of Art disbanded in 1987, having, in the view of its members, served its purpose. It was replaced, in public perception, by an invigorated RHA with its own gallery space from 1984, which has recently been revamped into an outstanding gallery with art studio facilities in Dublin’s Ely Place.

Interestingly the Irish Exhibition of Art disbanded in 1987, having, in the view of its members, served its purpose.

A selection was shown in the Ulster Museum in 1995 as was a selection in the Glebe gallery, Churchill, Co.

A new venue was provided by the Ormeau Baths Gallery (OBG), with a very successful exhibition in 2006 of 292 works with 180 works from non–members, attracting record sales of 124 works and 8000 visitors over four weeks.