Sir Alfred Munnings Flower Loft Lamorna Cove Cornwall

Friend of General Major J E B Seely lived here during WWI

Flower Loft, Lamorna Cornwall UK

Here is just a little snippet, that will no doubt lead us to some track about the Arts Community in Cornwall and in particular around Penzance and St Ives Area. We were luck enough to enjoy a celebratory holiday at this house for my late parents Golden Wedding and it is really a haven of a spot.

In the flower loft itself above the front door there is a small balcony and the clear sight of brushes having been cleaned of pigment on the outside wall can still be seen today.

Lamorna Cove is a special place for me and this lovely home is well worth a visit for a great retreat in Cornwall.

Sir Alfred Munnings was the illustrator and friend of the Author Major General J E B Seely, who’s account of his War Horse Warrior from the first world war inspired the highly acclaimed stage production War Horse, which is now also a film.

 

  • Sir Alfred lost the sight of his right eye in an accident when he was twenty (a blow from a briar when lifting a dog over a hedge)
  • he was rejected on two occasions by the Army because of his sight, he spent the first three years of the 1914-18 war mainly in Lamorna.
  • In 1917, with the help of a friend, he got a lowly job caring for remounts at Calcot Park near Reading
  • Laura Knight a renowned artist and part of the community that had gathered and lived in Cornwall spoke highly of Sir Alfred who’s equestrian paintings are regarded by many  to be some of the best in English painting, said of him

“His extraordinary vitality, his joy in his work, none of us could forget him. He was a fighter. He fought the wind that shivered his easel and canvas. He fought the heat and cold. He fought the shifting sun and the changing shadows”.

  • Early in 1918 he was sent to France as an official war artist attached to the Canadian Cavalry Brigade and later some forty-five of his canvasses were exhibited at the Canadian War Records Exhibition at the Royal Academy.
  • His most important painting was that of ‘General J. E. B. Seely (later Lord Mottistone) on his charger Warrior’ (National Gàllery, Ottawa), which led to his commission to paint the Earl of Athlone, brother of Queen Mary.
  • He was elected to the Royal Academy in 1919 and enjoyed fame success and financial benefit from these notable equestrian subjects.

Major General the Right Honourable J E B Seely CB CMG DSO on his Charger Warrior[geo_mashup_map]

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