Wapping Group of Artists

The Wapping Group began in 1939, when members of the Artists Society and the Langham Sketching Club met at the Prospect of Whitby pub in Wapping east London and decided to pass the coming summer sketching and painting by their beloved River Thames. The outbreak of World War II put paid to any more ideas and it was not until the end of hostilities that the artists reconvened in 1946 to formally establish the Wapping Group. Its first President was Jack Merriott and membership was limited to 25 artists whose sole aim was the delight in painting plein-air. At this time exhibiting such works was of lesser import generally and the painting season was thus restricted from April to September which has not changed. Their first three exhibitions were staged at the Port of London Authority headquarters before moving to the Royal Exchange Galleries where they remained until 1981.

The next two decades saw exhibitions hung at St. Botolph's Church, Aldgate until they settled hopefully with some permanency at the Mall Galleries. Very large mounts of the Thames shorelines are depicted by members ranging from Henley-on-Thames to Southend-on-Sea and also include the Medway, Crouch and Blackwater tributaries. Since its formation the group has been closely aligned with the RSMA and share some members both past and present. These include Jack Merriott, Trevor Chamberlain, Dennis Hanceri, Hugh Boycott Brown and Eric Thorpe. Their work of late has been exhibited at the Guildhall Art Gallery, London.