After a two year absence, I managed to see this year's Summer Exhibition with a fortnight to spare.    The first thing that struck me was the large number of people taking photographs.  I officiously told someone it wasn't allowed but an attendant corrected me - this was the first time that the Royal Academy had allowed photography.  So my mobile was pressed into use and I was able to capture images of some of the works which caught my attention.  Resolution for next year - take good camera with full battery!

The Small Weston Room was handed over to William Kentridge in recognition of his election as an Honarary Academician and the space was used to show his recent works on trees of Africa - linocuts, Indian ink and digital prints on dictionary pages.  The ink marks were particularly well suited to the subject matter.

An unexpected surprise was a display from Tom Phillips' The Humument, showing the development of individual pages.  And a large display of 40 prints by Norman Ackroyd was stunning. 

Apart from a large Grayson Perry tapestry and a small embroidery of a parrot, I didn't see other textile works.  Perhaps textile artists should make a concerted effort to flood the selection committee with works on textiles so that we would be hard to ignore..........

I went to the Royal Academy today to catch the Manet exhibition before it closes this weekend and to see the Bellows show.  It was impossible to see the first, as it was very crowded, several visitors deep before each picture, so no chance.

So I went up to the next floor to see the George Bellows - much more space and many fewer visitors - and was just bowled over by his work.  He documented life in modern New York, showing slums and parks, boxing matches and family portraits.  His drawings, lithographs and paintings have an energy which draws the viewer in, almost mesmerised by the detail.  But if you go, prepare to be shocked and moved by the war paintings.

This is an exhibition not to be missed.

Well, I did return to the exhibition and was very glad to have done so.

Grey 2012, a sculpture of a wolf in straw and plaster by Nicola Hicks was beautiful.  It seemed alive and fresh and I half expected it to move off.  Another animal piece was Spike, a cheetah, made out of coat hangers by David Mach - powerful and tactile, despite the spikes of its title.  Imaginary animals were the theme in Sweetly the Air Flew Overhead, Battle with the Unicorns No 11, an astonishing piece by Cathy de Monchaux, made out of paper, copper, brass and elastoplast.  The energy seemed real, complete with impalements!