Spring is the season of expectations. I'm paraphrasing a poem by Emily Dickinson in which she wrote about containing one’s self in the face of anticipated joy. It's in this spirit that I'm delighted to tell you a few things about the RA's programme of exhibitions for next year.

In the Spring of 2027, Rembrandt: Radical Printmaker will illustrate the power of printmaking in the hands of its undisputed master. His ability to trap light and atmosphere, by etching into a metal plate and then inking it up, evokes noirish atmospheres of peerless intensity.

Autumn brings Matisse, Picasso, Klee: Masterpieces from the Museum Berggruen, an extraordinary opportunity for the British public to see paintings usually found residing in Berlin, in one of Europe’s finest collections of masterpieces.

I'm also thrilled to welcome to the RA's Main Galleries Simone Leigh, who is one of the world's most exciting and ambitious sculptors. Leigh's singular work expands the traditions of figurative sculpture to create new realms of presence and power.

In between, there's the Summer Exhibition, an essential fixture of the British summer calendar and a celebratory show that represents the best of the RA. When it returns next year it'll be a bumper edition opening in May.

And there's much more to come. Later this year we'll announce an exciting new 2027 exhibition – more details in due course. We will also reopen Burlington Gardens that year with a new, David Chipperfield Architects-designed double-height gallery, which will significantly expand the display of our unique permanent collection and our free offer to visitors.

One of my ambitions for the RA is to strengthen its place at the heart of London as a home for exhibiting, making and debating art and architecture. We can only fulfill that mission thanks to visitors like you – even moreso those who can support us by becoming a Friend.

Until then, I look forward to seeing you at the inspiring Summer Exhibition, or in front of a sun-drenched Monet in Painting the French Riviera later in the year.

Simon