Alfred Munnings drawings at East Gallery NUA

Tonight I went to a private view of the new Alfred Munnings exhibition of drawings at East Gallery NUA. Just a bit of art history. Munnings was born and lived in Mendham in the Waveney Vallley just over the border in Suffolk. His dad was a miller and he loved drawing horses from the age of 8. He showed a prodigious natural talent and when his dad died in Munnings' early teens, the boy was apprenticed as a lithographer to Page Bros in our very own Norwich. Here he not only worked from 9am till 7.30pm but he then went to Norwich School of Art in the evenings where he learnt all about drawing, by copying plaster models - busts, bodies and heads. One of the heads was a horse, a copy of one of the Elgin marbles used as a model for students to draw. Munnings painted a delicate copy in sepia ink. The exhibition has this copy and also several student drawings - very, very beautiful and all the more amazing as he was so young (less than 20) when he was studying there. The drawings have been tucked away at NUA for many years but they are now fundraising for some money to restore and preserve these drawings. Next year is the 60th anniversary of his death so it would be good to get them done by then. The drawings are only on display until 17 February so you will need to get your skates on to see them but it is well worth it. Check out more here, and I will post some photos shortly. https://www.nua.ac.uk/thegallery/

There is also a film of drawing work being made by current NUA students, both for animation and paintings, studies and just for drawing.

Please consider supporting the fundraising campaign too and let's get this great draughstman properly celebrated in Norwich.