Our work of the month is The Corn Stook, oil on canvas, 1946, by John Aldridge, RA (1905 – 1983). We already suspected that the Gallery’s reputation extends well beyond Northwest Essex. But we were nevertheless surprised and delighted in July when Jessica Hope, who lives near Philadelphia in the USA, contacted us with an offer we couldn’trefuse – 5 pictures by John Aldridge. The works were acquired by Jessica’s late father Warren T. Hope, whose interest in Aldridgesprung from his research into the life and work of the English poet Norman Cameron. Aldridge and Cameron both moved in the circle of Robert Graves in Mallorca and became friends. Aldridge eventually married Cameron’s widow Gretl. This seasonal corn stook was probably painted en plein air in the fields near Great Bardfield, and was exhibited at the Leicester Galleries in August 1946. Picture kindly donated by Jessica Hope, Furlong PA. #twentiethcenturyart #fryartgallery #saffronwalden