LONDON — Rosa Klerkx has been announced as the 2025 winner of the Claridge’s Royal Academy Schools Art Prize. The Dutch artist, a recent graduate of the RA Schools, received the award last night at Claridge’s in Mayfair, presented by Sir Paul Smith. The prize highlights an artist at a key transition, as she steps from the RA’s postgraduate programme into the wider professional art world. The prize throws a crucial spotlight on an artist at a pivotal moment, as she moves from an academic setting into the professional arena.
Klerkx, born in Amsterdam in 1996, was selected from the cohort of the annual RA Schools Show. The decision was reached by a panel of heavyweight artists: Roger Hiorns RA, Chantal Joffe RA, and Claudette Johnson RA. The award is one of the most substantial of its kind, providing £30,000 in combined funding and a production budget that will culminate in a solo exhibition at a prominent West End gallery.
Her work, which cuts across video, performance, and sound, resists easy categorisation.
After studying at the Glasgow School of Art, Klerkx refined her practice at the RA Schools, shaping a method that balances structure and spontaneity. She devises precise notation systems, which then unravel through improvised choreography. In her multi-channel installations, video sequences drift in and out of sync, following dancers as they navigate overlooked or in-between spaces. The effect is a quiet, persistent pulse—a study of the human form navigating the ghosts of forgotten architecture.
This partnership between Claridge’s and the Royal Academy Schools arrives at a critical juncture. With the cost of higher education soaring and London’s studio space evaporating, the RA Schools’ model feels increasingly radical. Since its founding in 1769, the institution has provided a free, three-year postgraduate programme, annually inviting a small cohort of up to 17 artists to work without the burden of tuition fees. This financial insulation has long been its greatest asset, fostering a lineage that stretches from historic figures like Turner to contemporary artists such as Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, Michael Armitage RA, and Prem Sahib.
“She weaves sound, movement, and film into compositions that feel both intimate and vast,” said Eliza Bonham Carter, Director of the RA Schools. “Her installations unfold with a choreographer’s eye, capturing the effort and joy of dance while exposing the delicate framework of human connection.”
The Claridge’s art prize is more than philanthropy. “Artists and creatives are not just on our walls; they are part of our community’s fabric,” stated Thomas Kochs, the hotel’s Managing Director. “Backing the next generation through this award solidifies our commitment to the arts and to our neighbours at the Royal Academy.”
As an independent charity, the Royal Academy operates without direct government funding, relying on patronage and commercial partnerships to sustain its mission. In this context, Klerkx’s win is more than an individual accolade. It underscores the continued necessity of an institution that buffers artists from market pressures, enabling a kind of risk-taking that is becoming ever more rare in the capital.
Top Photo: Sir Paul Smith presents Claridge’s Royal Academy Schools Art Prize to Rosa Klerkx © Artlyst 2025