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St Albans: Wartime coal mining sketches by Henry Moore to go on show

R Saidman Photo showing Henry Moore sketching working coalminers at Wheldale Coliery in 1942R Saidman
Henry Moore sketching working coalminers at Wheldale Coliery in 1942

A collection of coal mining sketches by the artist Henry Moore is to be shown in the largest exhibition of its kind.

Moore, who is widely known for his sculpture and abstract work, penned the drawings for the War Artists' Advisory Committee (WAAC) in 1942.

The artist spent time in the coal pits with miners at Wheldale Colliery in Yorkshire, where his father had worked.

More than 100 drawings will be shown in the underground Weston Gallery of St Albans Museum later this year.

Moore spent a week in the mine drawing from observation, before working from memory to create the remaining drawings, which were all completed within six months.

The Whitworth, The University of Manchester Miner at Work in the Coalface, 1942, by Henry MooreThe Whitworth, The University of Manchester
Visitors to the exhibition will be able to see drawings from four coalmining sketchbooks, in which Moore used pencil, ink and wax

Visitors to the exhibition will be able to see drawings from four coalmining sketchbooks, in which Moore used pencil, ink and wax.

They have been loaned from the Henry Moore Foundation and family, the British Museum and National Coalmining Museum.

Farhana Begum, of St Albans Museums, described it as a "fantastic collaboration".

"Whether you're new to Moore, a life-long fan or take an interest in coalmining and World War Two, this exhibition offers discovery, excitement and contemplation," she said.

Annabel Lucas, curator at University Hertfordshire Arts Programme, said bringing the sketches to St Albans was "thrilling" and "invites us to look afresh at Moore as a sculptor."

Hepworth Wakefield LR Pit Boys at Pit Head 1942 - sketchHepworth Wakefield LR
One of Henry Moore's coalmining sketches, Pit Boys at Pit Head (1942)

The exhibition also takes inspiration from a new book about Moore called "Drawing in the Dark", written by art historian Chris Owen, which will be launched at the same time.

Mr Owen, former head of Anglia Ruskin University's Cambridge School of Art, said "representing miners emerging from the dusty darkness was a real challenge."

He added: "Add to that the physical discomfort of working 1,400 ft (427m) underground in conditions which Moore himself described as 'like hell'.

"The resulting drawings are both powerful and haunting."

Henry Moore: Drawing in the Dark runs from 16 December to 16 April 2023 at St Albans Museum.

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