An original watercolor sketch by Sir Alfred James Munnings (1878 – 1959) measuring approximately 10 x 7 3/4 inches. Last origin Chicago IL. Thanks for looking.
Sir Alfred James Munnings (1878 – 1959) was known as one of England’s finestpainters of horses, and as an outspoken critic of Modernism. Engaged byLord Beaverbrook’s Canadian War Memorials Fund, he earned several prestigious commissions afterthe Great Warthat made him wealthy. Between 1912 and 1914 he was a member of theNewlyn Schoolof artists. His work was part of the art competitions at the1928 Summer Olympics, the1932 Summer Olympics, and the1948 Summer Olympics. Alfred Munnings was born on 8 October 1878 at Mendham Mill, Mendham, Suffolk, across the River Waveney from Harlestonin Norfolk to Christian parents. His father was the miller and Alfred grew up surrounded by the activity of a busy working mill with horses and horse-drawn carts arriving daily. After leavingFramlingham Collegeat the age of fourteen[citation needed]he was apprenticed to aNorwichprinter, designing and drawing advertising posters for the next six years, attending theNorwich School of Artin his spare time. When his apprenticeship ended, he became a full-time painter. The loss of sight in his right eye in an accident in 1898 did not deflect his determination to paint, and in 1899 two of his pictures were shown at theRoyal Academy Summer Exhibition. He painted rural scenes, frequently of subjects such asGypsies and horses. He was associated with theNewlyn Schoolof painters, and while there metFlorence Carter-Wood(18881914), a young horsewoman and painter. They married on 19 January 1912 but she tried to kill herself on their honeymoon and did so in 1914 ]Munnings bought Castle House,Dedham, in 1919, describing it as ‘the house of my dreams’. He used the house and adjoining studio extensively throughout the rest of his career, and it was opened as theMunnings Art Museumin the early 1960s, after Munnings’s death.[6]Munnings remarried in 1920; his second wife was another horsewoman, Violet McBride. There were no children from either marriage. Although his second wife encouraged him to accept commissions from society figures, Munnings became best known for his equine painting: he often depicted horses participating in hunting and racing. His sporting art works have enjoyed popularity in the United Kingdom, the United States and elsewhere. As of 2007, the highest price paid for a Munnings painting was $7,848,000 forThe Red Prince Mare, far above his previous auction record of $4,292,500 set at Christie’sin December 1999. It was one of four works by Munnings in the auction.The Red Prince Mareis a 40 by 60 inches (100 by 150cm) oil on canvas that was executed in 1921 and had an estimate of $4,000,000 to $6,000,000.