Charles Cundall

Artist: Cundall, Charles

Charles Cundall
Charles Cundall

Movement(s): –

Charles Ernest Cundall, (1890 – 1971), was an English painter of topographical subjects and townscapes, best known for his large panoramic canvases.

Cundall was born in Stretford, Lancashire. After working as a designer of pottery and stained glass for Pilkington’s Lancastrian Pottery & Tiles under Gordon Forsyth, Cundall studied at the Manchester School of Art and obtained a scholarship to the Royal College of Art in 1912.

Whilst serving with the Royal Fusiliers in World War I, he was wounded in the right arm and had to learn to paint with his left arm before he returned to the RCA in 1918.

From 1919 to 1920 he attended the Slade School of Art, and then continued his studies in Paris. Cundall traveled widely throughout Italy in 1921 and 1923 and also journeyed to Sweden, Russia and Spain. His work was part of the art competitions at the 1928 Summer Olympics, the 1932 Summer Olympics, and the 1948 Summer Olympics.

At the start of World War II, Cundall worked on short-term contracts for the War Artists’ Advisory Committee before being given a full-time salaried commission as an Admiralty artist to work on Merchant Navy subjects. In 1941 he was assigned to the Air Ministry.

At the end of the war, King George VI purchased two of Cundall’s paintings showing war-time activities in Windsor Great Park. The Royal Navy reproduced Eurich’s painting on its official 1940 Christmas card, but many newspapers also reproduced a Ministry of Information photograph showing two servicemen at the National Gallery seemingly recognising elements of Cundall’s composition. This helped create a reputation of authenticity for Cundall’s work which has persisted.

He was married to the artist Jacqueline Pietersen (1899–1984).

Click here to read Cundall’s full bio on Wikipedia.

Cundall spent quite some time in France, and painted in many different cities. Here is a list of places he painted in (a link to his works “⇠” will appear next to each place when published):

  • Brittany
    • Josselin
    • Saint-Jacut-de-la-Mer
    • Vannes
  • Hauts-de-France
    • Boulogne-sur-Mer
    • Dunkerque
  • Normandy
    • Les Andelys
  • Provence-Alpes-Cote d’Azur

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