Pencil drawing of a horse's head looking to the left. The horse's ears are tilted back, so it may be listening to something behind it, or it may be in a bad mood! It has a darker mane and muzzle, and lighter coat. It has been initialed RMC under the chin of the horse.
Background

Ruby completed a number of pencil drawing of horses, but we think this particular one may be from her brief time at art school in Melbourne (perhaps the Working Men's College) in around 1921.  Her twin sister Beryl was married and living in Melbourne by that time, and Ruby may have stayed with her while she attended the school.  Most of the pencil drawings done by Ruby during this period are clearly technical exercises for the art course, but some are possibly of other students at the school, and one of them is this very lovely drawing of a horse, on the same sort of paper and initialed in the same way as all of Ruby's other course work.  

Bio for Ruby Campbell by Glenn Cooke

Additional image

Other drawings from the Melbourne course

We are fortunate to have in our collection many of the pencil drawing exercises completed by Ruby during her time in Melbourne.

Photograph of collection of pencil drawings completed by Ruby Campbell. They include technical studies of muscles and body parts, and drawings of classical statues. Approx 30 drawings are visible in the photograph.

 

 

 

 

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