§ § Sir Alfred Munnings K.C.V.O., P.R.A., RI (1878-1959) 'A...

§ § Sir Alfred Munnings K.C.V.O., P.R.A., RI (1878-1959) 'An Old Favourite' circa 1899, signed lower right watercolour, bodycolour and pencil 28cm x 38cm A preparatory study for one of the artist's most iconic early works: 'An Old Favourite', which was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1900 and was subsequently sold at Christie's, New York, in 1999, for a then world record price. Provenance: Acquired directly from the artist by Sir Edward Paulet Stracey, 7th Baronet (1871-1949), of Rackheath Hall, Norfolk and thence by descent. Literature: A.J. Munnings - An Artist's Life, Museum Press Limited, London, 1950, pp.95-97, 137; Jean Goodman - What a Go!: The Life of Alfred Munnings, Harper Collins, London, 1988, pp. 51-2, 58-9. LOT ESSAY George Chandler, a doctor from the neighbouring Norfolk town of Harleston, became a close friend of Sir Alfred Munnings. In 1899 he lent the artist a white pony, which went to live with Munnings at Mendham to serve as a model. Described by Munnings as a "white, fat favourite", the pony became one of his regular and much-used models. Munnings discusses An Old Favourite at length in his autobiography. See - A.J. Munnings - ''An Artist's Life'', Museum Press Limited, 1950, pp.95-97. ''I began with farm sales, horse fairs, even ploughing: but as labourers were always at work, and horses, too, I had difficulty in painting pictures of them all the time. My pattern of life was being weaved by circumstances, one of which looms large--the loan of a white pony as a model. Our doctor, George Chandler, who became one of my dearest friends, lived at Harleston, and seeing my efforts with the ponies at home, he offered to me this fat, white favourite belonging to his wife. The pony came to live at Mendham, a home of plenty, and was soon standing for me all day and every day. There was no asking for him or waiting until he was not in use. I saw him on a grey day feeding in the orchard, with the river and dark clumps of rushes and a distant level horizon behind him. I was so moved by what I saw that I was quickly back with a boy, my paints and easel, working at a canvas. We put oats and bran on the grass in driblets to keep him feeding, and be it more than forty years ago, I remember the pleasure of painting that day on a piece of perfect canvas...The white pony had a name, but for the life of me I cannot remember it. His mane and tail were thick and like silk, and his head was beautiful...The two cousins--Nina and Cecil--were staying with us again. Someone always seemed to be staying. Nina was with the pony, feeding it from the sieve of corn. She was wearing just such a blue overall as in the boat picture [Stranded, City of Bristol Museum and Art Gallery] with an old stocking cap…Could I but snatch this picture--sustain the effort-- put down what I saw! What a pattern it made and what a hopeless resolve was mine! This I soon discovered as the days went on. Then, being sentimental and knowing no better, I put Cecil on the pony's back and two other ponies in the background looking on--and believe me or not, I gave it an Academy title--An Old Favourite". Twins, Cecil and Nina were the children of Munnings's maternal aunt, Rosa. Munnings was only in his late teens when he painted An Old Favourite, clearly showing the use of colour and light for which became his trademarks. The final large oil on canvas version. ''An Old Favourite'', which was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1900, was sold at Christie's, New York, on 1st December, 1999 for $2,972,500, then a world record price for the artists work. While working on the large oil composition, Munnings struggled with painting the shadows and in order to resolve this executed several studies in watercolour-the present work being one of them. ''Blue dappled shadows of an apple-filled tree fell across the pony's back and quarters. Orchard trees in the background cast shadows on the grass'' (Ibid p.96) Above, another version in watercolour, this time Munnings has substituted Nina for his beloved dog Friday. Cecil wears a blue cap, instead of a white one. Watercolours are comparatively rare within Sir Alfred Munnings' body of work, as he largely abandoned the medium in the early 1920s, believing it too difficult to alternate between watercolour and oil painting. Between 1909 and 1911, however, he frequently favoured the spontaneity of watercolour for painting expeditions in the open air, as he often stored the day's work in a wagon while travelling. Works on paper proved far more practical than slow-drying oil paintings. We are grateful to Lorian Peralta-Ramos, internationally recognised as the foremost scholar on the work of Sir Alfred Munnings, for confirming the authenticity of this watercolour. "I think Munnings was greater than Stubbs. He made it move, had greater narrative quality and his groupings are better." — Augustus John

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