Curator's Choice: A Female Nude Seated at Julian's Atelier, Rue du Dragon
Munnings, Alfred James, 1878–1959
What made me go to Paris? I am unable to say!
Alfred Munnings regularly met with fellow artists in the bar of the Castle Hotel in Norwich on Saturday mornings, and it was here that the whole idea of a trip to Paris was inaugurated. Painted in the autumn of 1903 during a life class at the studio of the Académie Julian (a private art school), Munnings’ astute choice of pose uses the light from behind to maximum effect on the model’s body. The light and colour dances in her hair while her profile is in dark shadow. The backdrop of the studio adds atmosphere by depicting student sketches.
Juliet Eisdell, Curatorial Associate