In 1892, aged fourteen, Alfred Munnings moved from his home village of Mendham in Suffolk to the city of Norwich. He was apprenticed for six years to the lithographic printers Page Bros. & Co., Ltd. Here he learnt to design advertisements and posters and undertook work for successful local companies such as Colman’s Mustard and Caley’s Crackers.
In 2022 the museum presents a vibrant display of Munnings’ lesser known commercial designs, posters, black and white pictures and early paintings. The exhibition focusses on the early influences on a young Munnings and his ability to capture the popular aesthetic of La Belle Epoque.
An additional 150 oil and watercolour paintings and drawings by Sir Alfred Munnings are hung throughout the rest of the museum and the artist’s former working Studio. Alongside these are rare examples of his sculpture work. The carefully curated displays give a comprehensive survey of Munnings’ six decade career from childhood drawings to final oil paintings. Explore the artist’s developing style and approaches to painting through his passion for the rural people and landscapes of East Anglia, Cornwall and Exmoor and the demanding work of painting commissions for wealthy patrons and their horses.
The Munnings Art Museum is at Castle House, the former home of the artist Sir Alfred Munnings (1878-1959) and his wife, Violet. Described by Munnings as “the house of my dreams” he lived and worked in this elegant Tudor and Georgian building for over forty years until his death in 1959. The house, artist’s studio and garden are set in forty acres of beautiful countryside in the Dedham Vale on the borders of Essex and Suffolk.
The museum owns the largest collection of art works by this prolific East Anglian painter and former President of the Royal Academy (1944-1949).
Enjoy the ambience of Castle House with the furniture and personal items which remain in situ as if Sir Alfred and Violet have just left the room to return at any moment.
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