'Coming off the Heath, Newmarket.© 'The Estate of Sir Alfred Munnings'.
The Artist
SIR ALFRED MUNNINGS, PRA, RWS (1878 – 1959)
Born in Mendham, Suffolk, Alfred Munnings was the son of a miller. He was apprenticed to a firm of lithographers from 1893 to 1898 and then studied at the Norwich School of Art in the evenings. Later he went to the Atelier Julien in Paris.
While in Mendham, Munnings painted many scenes of country life, particularly horse fairs and roving Gypsies. It was a visit to Bungay Races that first sparked his interest in racehorses, jockeys in silks, gipsy caravans and all the excitement of the racecourse. He started visiting Cornwall from 1906, and then moved there in 1911. He was an important addition to the Newlyn School of artists. When the First World War broke out, Munnings tried to enlist, but was turned down on account of the blindness in his right eye. He lost sight in it after an accident in 1899. He became an army 'Strapper' at the Remounts Depot, Calcot Park, near Reading and later went to France as an official war artist, attached to the Canadian Cavalry Brigade from early 1918.
The year 1919 was a major turning-point in all aspects of Munnings’s life; he painted his first racehorse, Poethlyn, the winner of the Grand National, and became an Associate of the Royal Academy. He met Violet McBride, whom he was to marry, and bought Castle House, Dedham, describing it as 'the house of my dreams'. His wife, Violet, a proficient horsewoman, was often his muse as seen above right in My Wife, My Horse, and Myself.
'My Wife, My Horse and Myself'. The artist and his wife in front of Castle House, Dedham, now the Munnings Museum.
The Munnings Art Museum
The Munnings Art Museum at Castle House, Dedham, maintains a permanent exhibition of his pictures. Munnings prolific career, spanning over 60 years, brought him honor, with election to the Presidency of the Royal Academy in 1944, a Knighthood in 1945, and a personal award from the Sovereign in 1947, when he was created Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order.
The Munnings Art Museum's carefully curated displays ensure that there is always a fully representative selection of his work on display, ranging from his childhood drawings to last paintings. The Museum is open from beginning of April to end of October and visitors can experience Munnings’ passion for the rural traditions and landscapes of East Anglia, Cornwall and further afield.
'Before the Start at Newmarket'
© 'The Estate of Sir Alfred Munnings'