Brian Morley’s drawings depict scenes from his career in coal mining. They are currently showing in our exhibition Coal Mining Stories, and are available to purchase from the exhibition and in the Harley Gallery Shop.
Original Brian Morley drawings cost £145. Contact our friendly shop team to enquire and purchase.
Born in Nottingham in 1937, Brian Morley started at Linby Colliery aged 15 and worked in the pit bottom.
Morley went into the Army for 3 years in 1954. When he came out of the Army he started at Moorgreen pit; his job was ‘ganging’ a pony (driving a pony hauling coal). He did his coal face training in 1960 and after he finished his training his jobs included: ripping (removing the rock left above a coal seam to create roadways), heading (developing tunnels to open up new coal faces) and cutting (working at the coal face).
Morley was on strike in 1984/85. When Moorgreen closed in 1985, he moved to Hucknall pit. The coalface he was working on hit a white wall and Hucknall closed in 1986.
Morley was made redundant in October 1986 just before his 50th Birthday and never worked again.
Years later, Morley began drawing; he had pens and paper in the house for his grandchildren. His grandchildren asked him about his work as a coalminer and Morley found the best way to explain was to draw pictures for them. He found he was able to draw scenes he could remember from the pit and capture them in his drawings.
An exhibition of 70 of Morley’s drawings was held at Nottinghamshire Mining Museum, Mansfield in 2019.
Delicate fruit sculptures and iridescent glass bowls by Rachael Woodman, £150-£1550.
Recycled silver and gold plated jewellery by Lucy Behrens, £50-£190.
Stoneware pots by Eren Armitage, £34-£35.
Kaleidoscopic scarves by Wallace Sewell, £48-£165.