- Born:
- June 11, 1776, East Bergholt, Suffolk, England
- Died:
- March 31, 1837, London (aged 60)
- Movement / Style:
- English school
John Constable
-
Who was John Constable?
John Constable (1776–1837) was a major figure in English landscape painting during the early 19th century. He is renowned for his paintings of the English countryside, especially his native valley of the River Stour, known as "Constable country".
Constable was the son of a wealthy miller and merchant. After encouragement from Sir George Beaumont and a circle of antiquarians, he pursued art, joining the Royal Academy schools in 1799. Although the academy promoted history painting, Constable focused on landscape.
His famous 1821 painting, The Hay Wain, is one of his best-known works. Constable's unique approach involved sketching to capture fleeting light and natural effects, which influenced landscape painting, especially the Barbizon school.
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What kind of art was John Constable known for creating?
John Constable was a prominent figure in early 19th-century English landscape painting, celebrated for his realistic and precise depictions of the English countryside. He especially focused on his native valley of the River Stour, known as "Constable country".
Constable's art uniquely captured natural appearances, especially the fleeting effects of stormy skies. Unlike other artists, he painted familiar places tied to his personal life instead of sites popular with tourists. His technique of producing full-size oil sketches allowed him to resolve compositions fully and capture the immediacy of a passing moment, influencing the Barbizon school and the development of Impressionism.
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What landscapes or places did Constable often paint?
John Constable was a prominent figure in English landscape painting, best known for his paintings of the English countryside. He focused on sites with which he had family connections or where, for personal reasons, he happened to be. Constable is particularly known for his representations of his native valley of the River Stour, an area later known as "Constable country".
Constable also painted in other locations, such as Hampstead Heath, where he turned his focus to the skies, capturing the momentary qualities of changeable skies. He briefly sketched in Salisbury in 1823 and in Brighton, where he made a series of oil sketches.
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Why is Constable considered an important figure in British art?
John Constable (1776-1837) stands as a pivotal figure in British art, celebrated for his profound impact on landscape painting during the early 19th century. Eschewing popular touring destinations, Constable instead focused on capturing the essence of the English countryside, particularly his beloved River Stour valley, later known as "Constable country".
Constable's dedication to naturalism and his innovative techniques set him apart. He sought to depict the fleeting effects of light, atmosphere, and weather with scientific precision and deep affection, capturing "light---dews---breezes---bloom---and freshness". His unique style, characterized by rough, broken touches of color and a bright palette, revolutionized landscape painting and paved the way for future generations of artists.
His influence extended beyond his lifetime, notably inspiring the French Barbizon School and, in turn, the Impressionist movement. Constable's legacy lies in his ability to capture the beauty and essence of the English countryside, solidifying his place as a major figure in British art.
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What techniques did Constable use to show nature and weather in his paintings?
John Constable captured nature and weather in his paintings through innovative techniques. He is known for his cloud studies that documented meteorological phenomena and captured the momentary qualities of changeable skies.
Constable's style included rough, broken touches of color and a fresh, bright palette, which allowed him to capture the effects of light on the landscape. His paint surfaces became increasingly fractured, communicating optical effects that evoked the physical experience of nature. In his later years, he showed an astonishing capacity to represent natural appearances, especially the fleeting and dramatic effects of stormy skies.
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How did John Constable’s style influence other artists and the development of landscape painting?
John Constable's innovative style significantly influenced landscape painting, particularly his focus on capturing the effects of light and atmosphere with rough, broken touches of color. His art, characterized by a fresh, bright palette and a departure from conventional browns, greatly inspired the French Impressionists.
Constable's dedication to depicting natural appearances and his intensive oil sketching were unique. His works captured fleeting effects, like stormy skies, and reflected the rural realities of a changing Britain. Although he had reasonable recognition during his life, his influence grew after his death, particularly with the re-examination of his oil sketches by scholars seeking British forerunners to Impressionism.
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John Constable (born June 11, 1776, East Bergholt, Suffolk, England—died March 31, 1837, London) was a major figure in English landscape painting in the early 19th century. He is best known for his paintings of the English countryside, particularly those representing his native valley of the River Stour, an area that came to be known as “Constable country.”
Beginnings
The son of a wealthy miller and merchant who owned a substantial house and small farm, Constable was reared in a small Suffolk village. The environs of his childhood and his understanding of its rural economy would later figure prominently in his work. As he would write in 1821, “I should paint my own places best…I associate my ‘careless boyhood’ to all that lies on the banks of the Stour.”
Constable was meant to enter his father’s business, but, after meeting the famous connoisseur Sir George Beaumont in 1795, and then a circle of antiquarians and connoisseurs at Edmonton in 1796, he was inspired to pursue art. In February 1799 he made himself known to the influential academician Joseph Farington, and in March he entered the prestigious Royal Academy schools, with the grudging approval of his father. At the time, art academies stressed history painting as the most appropriate subject matter for their students, but from the beginning Constable showed a particular interest in landscape.
In 1802 Constable refused the stability of a post as drawing master at a military academy so that he could instead dedicate himself to landscape painting and to studying nature directly in the English countryside. That same year he exhibited his work at the Royal Academy for the first time. Despite some early explorations in oil, in the first part of this decade he preferred using watercolour and graphic media in his studies of nature. He produced fine studies in these media during a trip to the famously picturesque Lake District in autumn 1806, but his exhibitions of these works in both 1807 and 1808 were unsuccessful in attracting public notice.
Early maturity
Although based in London during this period, Constable would frequently make extended visits to his native East Bergholt to sketch. (On one such stay in 1809, he fell in love with Maria Bicknell, who was visiting her grandfather, the rector there.) Constable had been regularly sketching in oil since 1808, and by 1810 he had achieved extraordinary deftness with the medium (he would often be associated with his oil sketches in the future). His art became far more focused about this time: his sketches were either discrete studies, or, befitting academic practice, they were made in preparation for preconceived easel paintings. The most significant large easel painting of the period was Dedham Vale: Morning (1811), which married closely observed naturalistic effect to a scene composed according to the academic criteria established by 17th-century French painter Claude Lorrain.
In September 1811 Constable stayed in Salisbury with an old family friend, the Bishop of Salisbury, and grew close to the bishop’s nephew, John Fisher. Their correspondence is a hugely informative source on Constable’s art: he explains his aims and aspirations, reacts candidly and sometimes aggressively to contemporary criticism, and reveals himself to be driven, ambitious, and prey to gnawing self-doubt.
During this period, Bicknell’s family was pressuring her to end her relationship with the struggling artist, and her courtship with him had to become effectively clandestine. Constable found relief from this distraction by working in East Bergholt and, by 1814, with Boatbuilding and The Stour Valley and Dedham Village, he was painting easel pictures in the open. In his works from this period, such as Flatford Mill (1816), Constable displayed remarkable precision of touch and accuracy in description, comparable to contemporary landscapes by George Robert Lewis and John Linnell. His iconography was traditional and celebrated the continuum and stability of English country life. Constable achieved a bittersweet stability of his own when, upon his father’s death in 1816, he received an inheritance that allowed him the financial independence to marry Maria.
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