Munnings Art Museum — Attraction in Colchester

Strongly recommend this house/gallery. It’s not really a museum, doesn’t have that feel (that’s a commendation!). Easy find just off the A12. It’s in Dedham. It’s adjacent to Flatford, etc for Constable country. But. The Munnings gallery far surpasses the National Trust’s poor efforts at Flatford (where there’s no art and very little information about Constable or the views he painted). If you want to see art and art in context, visit Munnings, not the NT area of Flatford.

Anyway. Lots of plus points: The house itself is very lovely. It has avoided the grim fate of many places - Ie being ‘done up’ or ‘improved’. There are no patronising dummy sheets (‘Munnings liked sugar in his tea…’, nonsense). There’s a huge amount of his art and sketching (biggest collection in the world). Some fantastic period photos. The downstairs takes about 2 hours, if you actually look at the paintings. Upstairs takes at least the same. The Royal Ascot exhibition is very fun to see. There’s Pathe news reel, sketches and much more. A very good tea hut is in the studio. It serves a very good ploughman’s for 2 people. And cake! No booze, though. Mostly outside seating. Small...

I enjoyed this an awful lot more than I thought I would! Ironically, I lived on the same road when I was 2/3 years old, but we never visited. 50 years later, we finally got ourselves organised and it was worth the wait. I'm not very knowledgeable about art, but the stewards were so friendly and informative, the pieces were presented beautifully. The accompanying text was interesting, informative and often amusing. The dinner table was creative and a real conversation starter. Very interesting to see the difference between his early work, where he got to express himself as an artist (I believe he was known as the British impressionist) and the commissions he took on to pay the bills. Even when he was earning a crust (pretty massive one), the devotion and skill he poured in to the animals in his work is astonishing. His skill as a colourist (look at the coat of the horses) is quite breathtaking. My personal favourites were 'Charlotte's Pony' and 'The Path to the Orchard' (I hope I remembered the titles correctly!). The house itself is gorgeous and if that still doesn't interest you, there's a cafe with...

Castle House was Munnings' very happy home for many years. Now a museum displaying a changing selection of his works, the warmth of the home can still be felt. Paintings, sketches, & photographs are all hung in rooms still containing the artist's own furniture, books, & ornaments. The paintings themselves are a joy, particularly if you love horses, for which he is most famous, but they are by no means the sole subject. The museum shows Munnings' diversity as an artist, & how his painting style subtly changed over the years. We are given glimpses into his life; there are pictures created while at school, paintings of Norfolk & the West Country, advertising posters for mustard & crackers. There are many photographs still around the home & we are introduced to some of his regular models & subjects, including his two wives. Many pieces are accompanied by an anecdote relating to them in some way or another. All of this brings the artist to life, & makes you feel that you have got to know him just...