Alfred James MUNNINGS P.R.A., R.W.S. (Mendham, 1878 - Dedham, 1959 ) Crossing the ford Watercolour gouache over pencil line Signed and dated 'A. J. Munnings / 1908' lower right Crossing the ford, watercolour gouache over pencil, signed and dated, by A. Munnings 12.20 x 18.30 in. 31 x 46.5 cm Provenance: Anonymous sale; London, Sotheby's, 17 December 2015, no. 63 ; Richard Green Gallery, London; Private collection, Belgium Our wonderful watercolour is part of a serial work by our artist. Sir Alfred James Munnings painted three large versions of The Ford in oil in the summer of 1910 in the Ringland countryside, one of which was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1911. These paintings systematically depict a group of ponies being led across a ford, emerging from the water and almost from the canvas at the same time, so brutal is the confrontation with the viewer and so realistic is the movement imparted by the artist. Our work, dated 1908, predates these important definitive paintings by a few years, and we think it could be seen as a preparatory work in the serial representation of this subject that so fascinated Munnings. Another watercolour, also dated 1908, with the same large canons as the one we are presenting here, is also known and was recently auctioned (see anonymous sale; London, Sotheby's, 14 July 2021, no. 16, fig. 1). In addition to these two watercolours, which represent the first cornerstones of this predominant theme in the artist's work, we know of numerous works that stem from these early thoughts. Indeed, these compositions have the double merit of allowing the artist to demonstrate both his anatomical knowledge of horses and his incomparable science and talent in the representation of the variations and movements of water. Munnings therefore produced various versions, on different supports, using different techniques and from different angles. Our watercolour also stands out as one of the earliest representations of the famous white pony Augereau, which became the main equestrian model in Munnings' work. In addition to the animal, the groom named Shrimp, who appeared in many of the artist's paintings, is also recognisable here. All of Munnings' bold aesthetic style is reflected in our watercolour. In addition to the ochre and earthy tones typical of peasant themes, our artist adds subtle touches of blue and mauve to suggest the shadows, resolutely modern and so skilfully applied to the paper. Alfred James MUNNINGS P.R.A., R.W.S. (Mendham, 1878 - Dedham, 1959 ) 31 x 46.5 cm