400 works feature in Cambridge Drawing Society’s spring exhibition
Cambridge Drawing Society (CDS), one of the oldest art societies in the UK, is hosting its Spring 2025 Exhibition in the newly-refurbished Pitt Building all this week until Saturday (7 June).
Nearly 400 works are on display by 124 members – including 18 newly-selected artists – over two rooms, allowing visitors to browse through an extensive selection of works, all of which are available for sale.
A record-breaking 78 artists applied to join the Society ahead of the exhibition – more than twice the usual number.
Susan Abbs, president of Cambridge Drawing Society, said the exhibition has been “fabulous” so far, noting that “a few of the artists have sold out all their pieces”.
She added: “We had 78 people applying to join and we’ve selected 18. We were just overwhelmed – we’ve never had so many artists wanting to join before.
“The quality was amazing and unfortunately we had to cut down the numbers.”
However, those not selected this time around don’t miss out entirely.
“We don’t want to lose touch with the brilliant artists who weren’t selected this year, so we’ve offered them complimentary Friends membership,” said Susan.
“This gives them access to all our events – talks, workshops, and sketching sessions – so they can stay connected to the CDS community.”
The Cambridge Drawing Society was founded in 1882 and it supports both professional and amateur artists working across a wide range of disciplines.
In addition to its twice-yearly exhibitions, the Society runs a year-round programme of artist talks, workshops, and sketching events.
The Society also offers a Friends membership for non-artists who would like to support and feel part of its creative community.
Friends don’t exhibit, but they enjoy access to all events including exclusive previews and are warmly welcomed into the social life of the Society.
Susan said: “I think this is a really exciting show, because we have so many new members and we have such a nice mix of different works.
“The name of course is Cambridge Drawing Society, but we have sculptures, we have prints, we have paintings, we have drawings... so a huge range and all very exciting.
“We have traditional, very realistic works, we also have very abstract works...
“I’m very, very pleased with how it’s turned out. I think it’s one of our best shows yet.”
For more, visit cambridgedrawingsociety.org.
