LONDON – Lily Allen, Sasha Keable, Jessie Ware, and a cross-section of London’s creative community turned up Wednesday night for the Royal Academy of Arts summer exhibition preview party, where fashion once again played a central role alongside the art.
Among the best‑dressed guests, “West End Girl” Allen continued her collaboration with the London-based label 16Arlington in a custom look, adapting the Andrea dress from the spring 2026 collection into a floor-length gown, combining lingerie-like satin with a lace-trimmed mesh overlay.
Marco Capaldo and Lily Allen
Darren Gerrish/WireImage for The Royal Academy of Arts
Olivia Ozi‑Oiza Chance, creative director and designer of Oiza Studio, showcased her own brand, wearing a floral bralette and satin skirt from her spring 2025 collection. Singer and podcaster Ware wore a raw‑edge ruffle top with a gingham skirt, and carried a rather eye-catching bag with floral-shaped handle.
Keable doubled as both performer and style standout. The British singer closed the evening with a live set and arrived in a sporty black ensemble paired with pink heels. Emma Thynn, Marchioness of Bath, opted for a more romantic approach in an embroidered, sheer white dress by Simkhai.
Notable attendees of the night also included Brian Cox, Amelia Windsor, Nick Grimshaw, Joe Locke, Pixie Geldof, Clara Amfo, and Jenna Coleman, who wore a cream dress by Lanvin’s Peter Copping.
Designer Henry Holland described the evening as “a night at the museum,” calling the RA summer party “always the best night of panic buying amazing works before it goes and the official start of the summer.”
Daniel Fletcher, guest, Amber Anderson and Adam Gallagher
Darren Gerrish/WireImage for The Royal Academy of Arts
Daniel Fletcher, creative director of both Chinese label Mithridate and Royal Ascot, said the summer exhibition opening is one of his favourite nights of the year.
“It’s equal parts chic and chaotic. Everyone is trying to say hello to each other but at the same time their eye is looking over your shoulder, not because they have spotted someone more important to talk to but because a small etching has just jumped out at them from the sea of frames and they desperately need to get to the counter and buy it before anyone else does,” he said.
He also sees the night as a good precursor for what’s to come in the next month with Royal Ascot starting next week then straight into Milan and Paris Fashion weeks.
“This year there was a dark, weirdness to a lot of the works that I enjoyed and some particularly lovely small sculpture works to be found,” he said, adding that lot 523 by Tim Shaw was his favourite this year.
Archie Madekwe, Laura Weir, Grayson Perry, Anoushka Shankar and Eva Langret
Darren Gerrish/WireImage for The Royal Academy of Arts
This year’s party was cochaired by musician Anoushka Shankar; British actor Archie Madekwe; Eva Langret, Frieze’s director of EMEA; Turner Prize winner and Royal Academician Grayson Perry; and British Fashion Council chief executive officer Laura Weir.
The combination reflected the RA’s strategy of positioning the summer exhibition as an intersection for art, fashion, design, film, and music, and underscored Weir’s push to advance British fashion’s influence within the wider creative economy.
Weir said she has been going to the RA to “cosplay as an art collector for many years.” This time, she purchased three pieces by Anne-Marie Butlin, Clare Thatcher, and Dominic Parczuk, respectively.
“The RA summer exhibition was the only place that would have me on the guest list before I had a big job, the only place I could afford to buy a picture, and over the years I’ve built a lovely collection of pieces I love living with,” she added.
Her approach to the night is to spot something that makes her happy while she “fly around the room, frantically checking the price in the catalogue, running back and forth between the room and the buyers’ desk to see if it’s been sold, and only afterwards finding out who the artist is.”
Yi Ning, cofounder and CEO of SR_A, who attended the party with fellow cofounder Samuel Ross, said the summer party is “one of the clearest expressions of London’s position as a global bedrock for the creative industries.”
She added that the summer exhibition “enables people to directly support artists through acquisition, transforming appreciation into participation,” and argued that such patronage helps sustain creative talent over the long term.
